BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    AB 2881


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          CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS


          AB  
          2881 (Committee on Judiciary)


          As Amended  August 18, 2016


          Majority vote


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          Original Committee Reference:  JUD.


          SUMMARY:  Makes various changes to the California codes as part  
          of the Committee's civil law omnibus bill.  Specifically, this  
          bill:


          1)Establishes public notice districts as the place for the  
            publication of notice as provided, and repeals provisions  
            regarding judicial districts, as provided.


          2)Requires the Controller to establish and maintain trial court  
            revenue distribution guidelines.


          3)Extends the sunset relating to non-certification of a court  
            reporter's instant visual display of testimony or proceedings.










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          4)Clarifies the definition of "officer" in the California Public  
            Records Act (CPRA).


          5)Clarify that a party may prepare and serve a notice of entry  
            of judgment to all parties who have appeared in the action or  
            proceeding, by way of personal delivery, as well as by mail.  


          6)Clarify that a surviving business partner of a decedent, as  
            provided, is not competent to act as a personal representative  
            in administering an estate.


          7)Clarify a "partner" not competent to act as a personal  
            representative of an estate, as defined, is a "business  
            partner."


          8)Clarify the professional immunity for conduct relating to  
            persons who are involuntarily committed.


          9)Makes other technical and conforming changes.


          The Senate amendments remove several omnibus proposals, make  
          technical changes, include double-jointing language, and add the  
          following omnibus proposals:


          1)Clarify that a party may prepare and serve a notice of entry  
            of judgment to all parties who have appeared in the action or  
            proceeding, by way of personal delivery, as well as by mail.  


          2)Clarify that a surviving business partner of a decedent, as  
            provided, is not competent to act as a personal representative  
            in administering an estate.


          3)Clarify a "partner" not competent to act as a personal  








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            representative of an estate, as defined, is a "business  
            partner."


          4)Clarify the professional immunity for conduct relating to  
            persons who are involuntarily committed.


          EXISTING LAW:


          1)Provides that where judicial districts in a county have been  
            consolidated, or where the municipal and superior courts in a  
            county have unified, the territory embraced within the  
            respective prior component judicial districts shall be  
            separate judicial districts for the purpose of publication  
            within a judicial district.  (Government Code Section  
            71042.5.)


          2)Requires a county recorder to keep on file a map approved by  
            the county surveyor establishing the boundaries of a judicial  
            district, as provided, that shows the boundaries of all  
            consolidated or unified districts and component districts as  
            of the date of consolidation or unification.  (Government Code  
            Section 71042.6.)


          3)Requires a hosting platform to provide a notice, as specified,  
            to occupants listing a residence for short-term rental on a  
            hosting platform.  (Business and Professions Code Section  
            22592.)


          4)Requires the Controller to establish, supervise, and as  
            necessary revise a uniform accounting system, including a  
            system of audit, to the end that all fines, penalties,  
            forfeitures, and fees assessed by courts, and their collection  
            and appropriate disbursement, shall be properly and uniformly  
            accounted for.  (Government Code Section 71380.)










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          5)Requires each installment or partial payment of a fine,  
            penalty, forfeiture or fee to be prorated among the state and  
            local shares according to the uniform accounting system  
            established by the State Controller, as provided.  (Penal Code  
            Section 1462.5.)


          6)Provides that the report of the official reporter, or official  
            reporter pro tempore, of any court, duly appointed and sworn,  
            when transcribed and certified as being a correct transcript  
            of the testimony and proceedings in the case, is prima facie  
            evidence of that testimony and proceedings.  (Code of Civil  
            Procedure Section 273.)


          7)Provides that until January 1, 2017, the instant visual  
            display of the testimony or proceedings, or both, shall not be  
            certified and cannot be used, cited, distributed, or  
            transcribed as the official certified transcript of the  
            proceedings.  Further provides that until January 1, 2017, the  
            instant visual display of the testimony or proceedings, or  
            both, shall not be cited or used in any way or at any time to  
            rebut or contradict the official certified transcript of the  
            proceedings as provided by the official reporter or official  
            reporter pro tempore.  (Ibid.)


          8)Defines civil executive officers of the state, as provided.   
            (Government Code Sections 1001.) 


          FISCAL EFFECT:  According to the Senate Appropriations  
          Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.


          COMMENTS:  This bill is the Assembly Judiciary Committee's  
          biennial omnibus civil law bill.  The purpose of the omnibus  
          bill is intended to increase the efficiency of the legislative  
          process, conserve legislative resources, and eliminate the need  
          to unnecessarily hear a number of technical, clarifying, or  
          modest stand-alone bills that might otherwise have to be  
          introduced and heard separately through the legislative process.  








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           Although it appears that most - if not all of these provisions  
          - are non-controversial, this analysis provides a brief review  
          of most of this bill's provisions.


          Implements recommendations by the California Law Revision  
          Commission involving the publication of certain legal notices.   
          Under existing law, certain types of notices must be published  
          in a "judicial district" - for example, a notice of a  
          foreclosure sale, or a sale of stored property.  Judicial  
          districts were originally established for the business and  
          elections of the courts of limited jurisdiction.  However, due  
          to court consolidation, these boundaries have largely become  
          obsolete; and yet, current law still requires certain notices to  
          be published in a judicial district.  Additionally, the  
          boundaries of these judicial districts are often difficult to  
          find.  Indeed, this Committee has learned that some  
          jurisdictions no longer have these maps on hand, and parties who  
          file the required notices must go to a private company to  
          retrieve them in order to fully comply with the law.   
          Accordingly, it seems safe to say that some notices may be  
          published in the wrong location, raising questions about the  
          legal validity of that notice.  This bill implements the work of  
          the Law Revision Commission which has painstakingly reviewed and  
          retrieved historical judicial district maps, and has established  
          new "public notice districts."  Under this bill, the public  
          notice districts are described by reference to cities and towns  
          - hewing closely to areas of historical judicial districts.   
          This bill, consistent with other Law Revision  
          Commission-sponsored bills, maintains the Legislature's intent  
          in establishing public notice districts for public notice  
          purposes, minimizes disruption to the current practice, and  
          reduces any confusion for parties.


          Provides additional clarity to the distinct accounting roles  
          performed by the Judicial Council and the State Controller over  
          state trial courts.  The Judicial Council and the State  
          Controller have important and distinct roles in overseeing our  
          trial courts.  Generally, the Judicial Council oversees the  
          trial courts' budgetary, fiscal, and accounting procedures,  
          whereas the State Controller oversees trial court audits and  








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          provides guidelines on the distribution of trial court revenues,  
          such as fines, fees, and penalties assessed by the courts.   
          Currently, the Judicial Council consults with the State  
          Controller to maintain appropriate regulations for recordkeeping  
          and accounting by the courts.  However, current law does not  
          properly reflect the distinctive roles of the Judicial Council  
          and the State Controller.  This bill clears up the division of  
          responsibilities between the Judicial Council and the State  
          Controller by clarifying that the State Controller maintains  
          trial court revenue distribution guidelines, and not accounting  
          systems.


          Extends the sunset relating to non-certification of a court  
          reporter's instant visual display of testimony or proceedings.   
          AB 170 (Mendoza), Chapter 87, Statutes 2009, provides that a  
          court reporter's instant visual display of testimony or  
          proceedings (commonly known as "real-time reporting"), or both,  
          may not be certified and cannot be used, cited, distributed, or  
          transcribed as the official transcript of the proceedings.  This  
          provision of law will sunset on January 1, 2017.  In order to  
          allow the Legislature additional time to assess the technology  
          of real-time reporting to ensure that it can provide access to  
          justice, to a level similar to traditional court reporting  
          services, this bill extends the sunset to 2022.


          Clarifies the definition of "officer" in the California Public  
          Records Act.  Under the California Public Records Act, any  
          "state agency" is required to disclose public records unless it  
          is subject to an exemption.  Currently, a "state agency" is  
          defined as any "state office, officer, department, division,  
          bureau, board, and commission or other state body or agency,"  
          excluding the legislature and the courts.  However, the statute  
          does not define "officer."  While the meaning of "officer" would  
          appear to have the same meaning of "executive officers" provided  
          under Government Code Section 1001, the law is unclear as to  
          whether members of state commissions are "officers" for purposes  
          of the CPRA.  This bill makes that update and statutory  
          correction.  










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          Clarifies that parties may effectuate service for a notice of  
          entry of judgment by personal service and by mail.  Under  
          existing law, a party seeking to serve a notice of entry of  
          judgment must do so by mail.  Other service statutes allow  
          parties to effectuate service by personal service.  Indeed, many  
          parties during litigation expect this method of service.  This  
          bill clarifies that a party may prepare and serve a notice of  
          entry of judgment to all parties who have appeared in the action  
          or proceeding, by way of personal delivery, as well as by mail.   



          Clarifies the use of "partner" in certain sections of the  
          Probate Code.  This bill would clarify that under Probate Code  
          Section 8402, a "partner" not competent to act as a personal  
          representative of an estate is a "business partner," and not a  
          "domestic partner."  It seems safe to say that the statute never  
          intended to apply the term "partner" to mean domestic partners.   
          However, the vagueness of the current statute has resulted in  
          unnecessary and wasteful litigation.  Indeed, other provisions  
          of the Probate Code provide that a surviving "Domestic Partner  
          of a decedent" gets priority for appointment as a personal  
          representative when the decedent dies intestate.  This bill  
          modifies the term "partner" to reconcile the differences in the  
          Probate Code to ensure that domestic partners can act as  
          personal representatives. 


          Clarifies the professional immunity for conduct relating to  
          persons who are involuntarily committed.  Under existing law,  
          persons with a mental disorder, who, as a result of the mental  
          disorder, is a danger to others or to himself or herself, may be  
          involuntarily committed.  If certain conditions are met, the  
          professional person in charge of the facility providing  
          intensive treatment to the person with a mental disorder is  
          exempt from civil or criminal liability, as provided.  This bill  
          would also exempt the following professional persons from civil  
          and criminal liability: the attorney or advocate representing  
          the person; the court-appointed commissioner or referee; the  
          certification review hearing officer; or the peace officer  
          responsible for detaining the person.









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          Analysis Prepared by:                                             
          Eric Dang / JUD. / (916) 319-2334  FN: 0004783