Regulations
TITLE 11-DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE DIVISION 1, CHAPTER 4.1 REGULATIONS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO THE STATEWIDE REGISTRY OF PRIVATE CONSERVATORS AND GUARDIANS
- §313. Title and Scope. This chapter shall be known as the Department of Justice Regulations for the Statewide Registry of Private Conservators and Guardians. These regulations implement, interpret and make specific the establishment of a Statewide Registry of private conservators and guardians as required by Probate Code sections 2850 through 2856 enacted by statute in 1999 and effective January 1, 2000. These regulations apply to any such private conservator and guardian who wishes to be appointed to, or to continue serving in, such a position after January 1, 2000. These regulations apply to any trustees who voluntarily choose to register with the Statewide Registry of Private Conservators and Guardians.
- §314. Definitions. The following definitions shall be applicable when used in these regulations: (a) "Administrative information" means any information reasonably necessary for the Department of Justice to maintain in the performance of the duties required by Chapter 13, Part 4, Division 4 of the Probate Code. Such information includes, but is not limited to, the date a Registration Application is received, the date the registration takes effect, and the expiration date of the registration. (b) "Attorney General" means the California Attorney General or any employee of the Attorney General acting under the authority of the Attorney General. (c)"Certificate of Registration" means the unique registration number issued by the Department of Justice to each registrant whose registration application is accepted by the Department of Justice for inclusion in the Statewide Registry and the registration application to which this number is affixed. (d) "Complaint" means a complaint as described in section 2850(e) of the Probate Code. (e) "Conservator" means a conservator required to register in the Statewide Registry as provided in Chapter 13, Part 4, Division 4 of the Probate Code. (f) "Court" means the court in which a conservatorship or guardianship proceeding is held, any judge in such proceeding, or a person acting at the direction of the judge. (g) "Declaration" means the Form SRCG-1 signed by the registrant declaring that the information therein is true and complete. (h) "Department of Justice" means the California Department of Justice or any employee of the Department of Justice acting under the authority of the Department of Justice. (i) "Fee", "Registration Fee," or "Renewal Fee" means the fee authorized by Probate Code section 2850. (j) "Guardian" means a guardian required to register in the Statewide Registry as provided in Chapter 13, Part 4, Division 4 of the Probate Code. (k) "Public access" means access to the Statewide Registry by any person other than a court as defined in these regulations. Conservators and guardians are considered members of the public except with regard to the information in the conservator's or guardian's own registration application. (1) "Registrant" means a conservator or guardian who has filed an application to be registered in the Statewide Registry. (m) "Registration Application" means Form SRCG-1 (issued January 2000) and all required accompanying documentation such as verification of college or graduate degrees a registrant claims to hold. (n) "Statewide Registry" means all information and documents filed with and maintained by the Attorney General as provided in Chapter 13, Part 4, Division 4 of the Probate Code, including registration applications and electronic databases. (o) "Verification of college or graduate degree" means documentation which substantiates the registrant has been awarded the degree claimed in the registration application such as a letter or transcript from the educational institution which awarded the degree attesting to the fact that the registrant holds the specific degree claimed, including the date the degree was awarded.
- §315. Registration. Every person required by Probate Code sections 2850 through 2856 to do so shall, prior to requesting appointment by a court as a conservator or guardian, register with the Department of Justice's Statewide Registry of Private Conservators and Guardians to be established and maintained by the Attorney General. Each registrant shall file Form SRCG-1, the registration form prescribed by the Attorney General, and the required fee, at the address set forth in section 316. Any person who has been appointed as a conservator or guardian prior to January 1, 2000, who wishes to continue such appointment shall register according to the schedule set forth in Probate Code section 285 l(b). As provided in Probate Code section 2856, trustees may register but are not required to do so. Any trustee who chooses to register is subject to these regulations and shall register in the same manner as conservators and guardians.
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§316. Place of Filing.
The address to be used for delivery and receipt of mail, information, registration applications, amendments, fees and other material required by Probate Code sections 2850 through 2856 is:
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
The telephone number to be used for inquiries relating to the Statewide Registry is (916) 327-9386. Registrants may also access Form SRCG-1 electronically via the Internet at the Attorney General website.
ATTN.:STATEWIDE REGISTRY OF PRIVATE CONSERVATORS AND GUARDIANS 1300 I STREET
P.O. BOX 944255 SACRAMENTO, CA 94244-2550 - §317. Registration Applications. Any person who wishes to be appointed to, or to continue serving in, a position as a private conservator or guardian shall file an application with the Attorney General to be registered in the Statewide Registry mandated by Probate Code section 2850. The registration application shall be submitted on Form SRCG-1, the form prescribed by the Attorney General, shall contain all of the information required by section 2850(b) of the Probate Code, including the signed declaration, and shall be submitted in the manner required by these regulations. The Attorney General will establish an electronic means of submitting registration information via the Internet. An applicant who uses the Internet shall enter the information required by Probate Code section 2850 electronically and submit a printed and signed form with the required fee and all applicable verifications of educational degrees to the above address. The Attorney General shall add administrative information, as defined in section 3 14(a) of these regulations, which is reasonably necessary to administer and maintain the Statewide Registry.
- §318. Time of Registration and Renewal Registration. The initial registration application and renewal applications shall be filed at the times required by Probate Code sections 2850 and 285 1. Registrations shall be renewed as prescribed in Probate Code section 2850. Renewal applications shall be filed with the Attorney General at least 60 days prior to the required date of renewal.
- §319. Fee for Registration. The fee for initial registration and for each registration renewal shall be determined by the Attorney General and shall be sufficient to cover the cost of establishing and maintaining the Statewide Registry. The fee is $385 for the initial three year registration period.
- §320. Registration Applications--Grounds for Denial. Any application received by the Attorney General which is not on the prescribed form, is incomplete, unsigned, illegible, or does not include the required fee and the information and documents required by Probate Code section 2850, shall not be accepted for filing but shall be returned to the applicant with the reason for the denial indicated and with any fee submitted. The applicant may resubmit a new application at any time, but such resubmitted applications shall be processed only after all other pending applications have been processed.
- §321. Statewide Registry. The Attorney General shall maintain copies of all registration applications accepted for filing and copies of all other information provided pursuant to sections 2850(e) and 2852 of the Probate Code which together shall constitute the Statewide Registry required by section 2850 of the Probate Code. The Attorney General may retain the foregoing information in electronic form so long as actual copies are archived and retrievable.
- §322. Certificate of Registration. After the Attorney General has accepted a registration application for filing, the registrant shall be assigned a Certificate of Registration number which shall be entered by the Attorney General on Form SRCG- 1. A copy of the form with the Certificate of Registration number shall be returned to the registrant and shall constitute the certificate of registration required by section 2850(d) of the Probate Code.
- §323. Appointment of Private Conservators and Guardians. After January 1, 2000, except as provided in Probate Code sections 2852 and 2853, no court shall appoint any person as a private conservator or guardian unless that person is registered in the Statewide Registry and the court considers all of the information pertaining to that person contained in the Statewide Registry in deciding whether to appoint that person.
- §324. Access to Statewide Registry. A conservator or guardian shall be considered a member of the public for purposes of access to the Statewide Registry except as to the information in his or her own registration file. Upon request, a conservator or guardian may obtain copies of such information at the same cost normally charged by the Attorney General for providing copies of documents. Ultimately, information in the Statewide Registry will be accessible via the Internet at the Attorney General's website, except that copies of complaints and other information provided by the courts pursuant to Probate Code sections 2850 and 2852, and verification of college and graduate degrees, need not be accessible electronically. If such information is not accessible by the courts electronically, the fact of their filing with the Attorney General shall be noted, and, upon request, copies shall be made available to the courts at the same cost normally charged by the Attorney General for providing copies of documents.
- §325. Penalties for False Registration or Misrepresentation. The penalties for serving as a private conservator or guardian without timely registering, for submitting false information in the registration application, or for making misrepresentations specified in Probate Code section 2852 shall be those penalties set forth in sections 2850 and 2852 of the Probate Code. Each instance of a misrepresentation, submission of false information, or appointment as a conservator or guardian without being timely registered shall constitute a separate violation and shall subject the conservator or guardian to a separate penalty.
- §326. Requests by Attorney General. Courts, conservators and guardians shall furnish all information, documents and other records requested by the Attorney General in order to establish and maintain the Statewide Registry.
- §327. Inquiries and Investigations. Courts, conservators and guardians shall cooperate fully with any inquiry or investigation that may be undertaken by the Attorney General.