Change of conservatee’s residence; determination of level of care (Prob. Code, §§ 2352, 2352.5)

(a) Notice before proposed change of residence

(1) Unless an emergency requires a shorter notice period, a conservator of the person must deliver notice of an intended change of the conservatee’s residence to each person listed below at least 20 days before the date of the proposed change and file the original notice form and proof of delivery with the court.

(2) Notice must be delivered using one of the methods authorized by Probate Code section 1215 to:

(A) The conservatee;

(B) The conservatee’s attorney of record;

(C) The conservatee’s spouse or registered domestic partner, if any;

(D) The conservatee’s relatives within the second degree or—if the conservator does not know of any spouse, domestic partner, or relatives within the second degree—the conservatee’s “deemed relatives” under Probate Code section 1821(b)(1)–(4); and

(E) Any interested person who has requested special notice of the matter under Probate Code section 2700.

(3) If the notice is delivered less than 20 days before the intended date of the move, the conservator must describe the circumstances that require a shorter notice period.

(b) Notice after change of residence

A conservator of the person must file a notice of any change of the conservatee’s residence with the court no more than 30 days after the date of the change. Unless waived by the court for good cause to prevent harm to the conservatee, the conservator must deliver notice to each person listed below and file a proof of delivery with the court.

(1) The conservatee’s attorney of record;

(2) The conservatee’s spouse or registered domestic partner, if any; and

(3) The conservatee’s relatives within the second degree or—if the conservator does not know of any spouse, domestic partner, or relatives within the second degree—the conservatee’s “deemed relatives” under Probate Code section 1821(b)(1)–(4); and

(4) Any interested person who has requested special notice of the matter under Probate Code section 2700.

(c) Qualifying changes of conservatee’s residence

(1) For purposes of this rule, the following changes qualify as changes of the conservatee’s residence:

(A) From a private residence to another private residence;

(B) From a private residence to a residential care facility;

(C) From a residential care facility to a private residence; and

(D) From a residential care facility to another residential care facility.

(2) The list in (1) is not intended to be exhaustive.

(d) Use of Judicial Council forms GC-079 and GC-080

(1) A conservator must use Notice Before Proposed Change of Residence of Conservatee or Ward (form GC-079) for the notice required under (a) and Probate Code section 2352(e)(3) before a change of residence. The conservator, the conservator’s attorney, or an employee of the attorney may complete delivery of notice and, if applicable, sign and file the proof of delivery by mail on page 2 of the form

(2) A conservator must use Notice After Change of Residence of Conservatee or Ward (form GC-080) for the notice required under (b) and Probate Code section 2352(e)(1) and (2) after a change of residence. The conservator, the conservator’s attorney, or an employee of the attorney may complete delivery of notice and, if applicable, sign and file the proof of delivery by mail on page 2 of the form.

(e) Prior court approval required to establish conservatee’s residence outside California

Notwithstanding any other provision of this rule, court approval is required before a conservator may establish a conservatee’s residence outside the state of California.

(f) Personal residence (Prob. Code, §§ 2352, 2352.5)

(1) The conservatee’s “personal residence,” for purposes of determining the least restrictive appropriate residence available and necessary to meet the needs of the conservatee, is the residence the conservatee understands or believes, or reasonably appears to understand or believe, to be the conservatee’s permanent residence on the date the first petition for appointment of a conservator was filed in the proceeding, regardless of whether the conservatee is living in that residence on that date. The conservatee’s personal residence may be a residential care facility, including:

(A) A board-and-care home;

(B) An intermediate-care facility;

(C) A skilled-nursing facility; or

(D) A secured-perimeter facility

(2) If the conservatee cannot form or communicate an understanding or belief concerning their permanent residence on the date the first petition for appointment of a conservator was filed in the proceeding, then the conservatee’s personal residence is the residence the conservatee most recently understood or believed, or appeared to understand or believe, to be the conservatee’s permanent residence.