Section 2253 Of Chapter 3. Temporary Guardians And Conservators From California Probate Code >> Division 4. >> Part 4. >> Chapter 3.
2253
. (a) If a temporary conservator of the person proposes to fix
the residence of the conservatee at a place other than that where the
conservatee resided prior to the commencement of the proceedings,
that power shall be requested of the court in writing, unless the
change of residence is required of the conservatee by a prior court
order. The request shall be filed with the petition for temporary
conservatorship or, if a temporary conservatorship has already been
established, separately. The request shall specify in particular the
place to which the temporary conservator proposes to move the
conservatee, and the precise reasons why it is believed that the
conservatee will suffer irreparable harm if the change of residence
is not permitted, and why no means less restrictive of the
conservatee's liberty will suffice to prevent that harm.
(b) Unless the court for good cause orders otherwise, the court
investigator shall do all of the following:
(1) Interview the conservatee personally.
(2) Inform the conservatee of the nature, purpose, and effect of
the request made under subdivision (a), and of the right of the
conservatee to oppose the request, attend the hearing, be represented
by legal counsel if the conservatee so chooses, and to have legal
counsel appointed by the court if unable to obtain legal counsel.
(3) Determine whether the conservatee is unable to attend the
hearing because of medical inability and, if able to attend, whether
the conservatee is willing to attend the hearing.
(4) Determine whether the conservatee wishes to oppose the
request.
(5) Determine whether the conservatee wishes to be represented by
legal counsel at the hearing and, if so, whether the conservatee has
retained legal counsel and, if not, the name of an attorney the
proposed conservatee wishes to retain or whether the conservatee
desires the court to appoint legal counsel.
(6) If the conservatee does not plan to retain legal counsel and
has not requested the appointment of legal counsel by the court,
determine whether the appointment of legal counsel would be helpful
to the resolution of the matter or is necessary to protect the
interests of the conservatee.
(7) Determine whether the proposed change of place of residence is
required to prevent irreparable harm to the conservatee and whether
no means less restrictive of the conservatee's liberty will suffice
to prevent that harm.
(8) Report to the court in writing, at least two days before the
hearing, concerning all of the foregoing, including the conservatee's
express communications concerning representation by legal counsel
and whether the conservatee is not willing to attend the hearing and
does not wish to oppose the request.
(c) Within seven days of the date of filing of a temporary
conservator's request to remove the conservatee from his or her
previous place of residence, the court shall hold a hearing on the
request.
(d) The conservatee shall be present at the hearing except in the
following cases:
(1) Where the conservatee is unable to attend the hearing by
reason of medical inability. Emotional or psychological instability
is not good cause for the absence of the conservatee from the hearing
unless, by reason of that instability, attendance at the hearing is
likely to cause serious and immediate physiological damage to the
conservatee.
(2) Where the court investigator has reported to the court that
the conservatee has expressly communicated that the conservatee is
not willing to attend the hearing and does not wish to oppose the
request, and the court makes an order that the conservatee need not
attend the hearing.
(e) If the conservatee is unable to attend the hearing because of
medical inability, that inability shall be established (1) by the
affidavit or certificate of a licensed medical practitioner or (2) if
the conservatee is an adherent of a religion whose tenets and
practices call for reliance on prayer alone for healing and is under
treatment by an accredited practitioner of that religion, by the
affidavit of the practitioner. The affidavit or certificate is
evidence only of the conservatee's inability to attend the hearing
and shall not be considered in determining the issue of need for the
establishment of a conservatorship.
(f) At the hearing, the conservatee has the right to be
represented by counsel and the right to confront and cross-examine
any witness presented by or on behalf of the temporary conservator
and to present evidence on his or her own behalf.
(g) The court may approve the request to remove the conservatee
from the previous place of residence only if the court finds (1) that
change of residence is required to prevent irreparable harm to the
conservatee and (2) that no means less restrictive of the conservatee'
s liberty will suffice to prevent that harm. If an order is made
authorizing the temporary conservator to remove the conservatee from
the previous place of residence, the order shall specify the specific
place wherein the temporary conservator is authorized to place the
conservatee. The temporary conservator may not be authorized to
remove the conservatee from this state unless it is additionally
shown that such removal is required to permit the performance of
specified nonpsychiatric medical treatment, consented to by the
conservatee, which is essential to the conservatee's physical
survival. A temporary conservator who willfully removes a temporary
conservatee from this state without authorization of the court is
guilty of a felony.
(h) Subject to subdivision (e) of Section 2252, the court shall
also order the temporary conservator to take all reasonable steps to
preserve the status quo concerning the conservatee's previous place
of residence.
(i) A superior court shall not be required to perform any duties
imposed pursuant to the amendments to this section enacted by Chapter
493 of the Statutes 2006 until the Legislature makes an
appropriation identified for this purpose.