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Conservatorship of Delva Roberts Souza

Case Number

19PR00252

Case Type

Conservatorship

Hearing Date / Time

Mon, 11/03/2025 - 08:30

Nature of Proceedings

Third Account and Report of Conservator

Tentative Ruling

Probate Notes:

Appearances required.

Appearances required.

The following discrepancies should be addressed at the hearing:

Discrepancy no. 1 – Estate on hand at beginning of Third Account does not match the amount on hand at the end of the Second account filed. (Prob. Code, §1061(a).) The difference is in the non-cash amount of $1,039,480.18 for the Third Account, which was listed as $1,948,787.18 in the non-cash estate on hand at the end of the Second Accounting.  This is a difference of $909,307. The difference should be traced and explained.

Discrepancy no. 2 – High Burn Rate. The estate is losing money at a rate that will not support the conservatee past 2029.

Discrepancy no. 3 - Sufficiency of the bond must be addressed. (See Local Rule 1742 (a) & (b).)

Current bond is $332,000, and Petitioner proposes to lower bond to $145,393.46.  This is insufficient.

The amount of the bond given by an admitted surety insurer must be the sum of the following (Prob C §2320(c); Cal Rules of Ct 7.204(c)):

  • The value of the personal property of the estate;
  • The probable annual gross income of all estate property;
  • The sum of the probable annual gross payments from specified county, state, and federal public welfare programs;
  • A reasonable amount for the cost of recovery to collect on the bond, including attorney fees and costs (see §9.4A for rules for determining this amount); and
  • The value of any real property for which the conservator holds an independent power of sale (Prob C §2591(c)).

The court may increase or decrease that amount on a showing of good cause. Prob C §2320(c).

The accounting shows that the property on hand is $56,405.24 in cash and $1,065,970.71 in non-cash.  The conservator holds an independent power to sell all non-cash property, except the conservatee’s primary residence.

Thus, the proposed lower bond not properly calculated.

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