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Chapter 9. Public Administrator of California Government Code >> Division 2. >> Title 3. >> Part 3. >> Chapter 9.

If the public administrator fails to qualify or fails to perform in person the duties of his office, the coroner shall be ex officio public administrator. If both the public administrator and the coroner fail to qualify or to perform the duties of the office, the board of supervisors shall appoint a suitable person as public administrator. All laws applicable to the qualification, powers, duties, and compensation of the public administrator shall apply to the coroner or appointee of the board.
The public administrator shall charge and collect such fees as are allowed by law.
If the public administrator is salaried and all fees and charges allowed him are paid or turned over to the county, then all fees and charges incurred by him for the benefit of any estate in which the assets prove insufficient therefor are county charges.
Every person holding the office of public administrator, public guardian, or public conservator and any deputy or agent of such officer is guilty of a crime who:
  (a) Purchases, directly or indirectly, the property of any estate or a claim against any estate administered by any public administrator, public guardian, or public conservator in his official capacity, or
  (b) Acts upon any transaction or expenditure in connection with the administration of an estate by the public administrator, public guardian, or public conservator in his official capacity, when he has a financial interest in such transaction or expenditure, or, having knowledge of such interest, is associated in business with anyone who has such an interest. Subdivisions (a) and (b) shall not be applicable to any act specifically authorized by court order. Any violation of this section is punishable by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment, or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of the Penal Code. Upon conviction of this section a person forfeits his office. This section is not intended to preclude prosecution under any other provisions of the criminal law which are otherwise applicable.
Employees in the office of public administrator, public guardian, or public conservator shall be subject to the provisions of Section 27443; provided that, the restrictions of Section 27443 shall apply only with respect to the administration of estates by their employing officer.
The authority of the public administrator ceases upon termination of his or her tenure in the office of public administrator, and his or her authority vests in the successor in the office of public administrator. If letters have been issued to "the public administrator" of the county, the letters are sufficient to authorize action by the successor and new letters need not be issued.