| 1 | 1 | | 84R333 CLG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Thompson of Harris H.B. No. 2733 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to payment and reimbursement of court costs in a |
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| 8 | 8 | | guardianship proceeding. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 1155.151, Estates Code, is amended by |
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| 11 | 11 | | amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsections (a-1), |
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| 12 | 12 | | (a-2), (d), and (e) to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (a) In a guardianship proceeding, the court costs of the |
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| 14 | 14 | | proceeding, including the costs described by Subsection (a-1) [cost |
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| 15 | 15 | | of the guardians ad litem, attorneys ad litem, court visitor, |
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| 16 | 16 | | mental health professionals, and interpreters appointed under this |
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| 17 | 17 | | title, shall be set in an amount the court considers equitable and |
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| 18 | 18 | | just and, except as provided by Subsection (c)], shall, except as |
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| 19 | 19 | | provided by Subsection (c), be paid as follows [out of the |
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| 20 | 20 | | guardianship estate, or the county treasury if the estate is |
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| 21 | 21 | | insufficient to pay the cost], and the court shall issue the |
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| 22 | 22 | | judgment accordingly: |
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| 23 | 23 | | (1) out of the guardianship estate; |
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| 24 | 24 | | (2) by the party to the proceeding who incurred the |
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| 25 | 25 | | costs unless that party filed, on the party's own behalf, an |
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| 26 | 26 | | affidavit of inability to pay the costs under Rule 145, Texas Rules |
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| 27 | 27 | | of Civil Procedure, if: |
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| 28 | 28 | | (A) there is no guardianship estate; or |
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| 29 | 29 | | (B) the guardianship estate is insufficient to |
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| 30 | 30 | | pay the costs; or |
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| 31 | 31 | | (3) out of the county treasury if: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (A) there is no guardianship estate or the |
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| 33 | 33 | | guardianship estate is insufficient to pay the costs; and |
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| 34 | 34 | | (B) the party to the proceeding who incurred the |
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| 35 | 35 | | costs filed, on the party's own behalf, an affidavit of inability to |
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| 36 | 36 | | pay the costs under Rule 145, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. |
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| 37 | 37 | | (a-1) In a guardianship proceeding, the cost of any |
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| 38 | 38 | | guardians ad litem, attorneys ad litem, court visitors, mental |
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| 39 | 39 | | health professionals, and interpreters appointed under this title |
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| 40 | 40 | | shall be set in an amount the court considers equitable and just. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (a-2) Notwithstanding any other law requiring the payment |
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| 42 | 42 | | of court costs in a guardianship proceeding, the following are not |
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| 43 | 43 | | required to pay court costs on the filing of or during a |
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| 44 | 44 | | guardianship proceeding: |
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| 45 | 45 | | (1) an attorney ad litem; |
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| 46 | 46 | | (2) a guardian ad litem; |
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| 47 | 47 | | (3) a person or entity who files an affidavit of |
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| 48 | 48 | | inability to pay under Rule 145, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure; |
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| 49 | 49 | | (4) a nonprofit guardianship program; |
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| 50 | 50 | | (5) a governmental entity; and |
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| 51 | 51 | | (6) a government agency or nonprofit agency providing |
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| 52 | 52 | | guardianship services. |
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| 53 | 53 | | (b) The costs attributable to the services of a person |
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| 54 | 54 | | described by Subsection (a-1) [(a)] shall be paid under this |
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| 55 | 55 | | section at any time after the commencement of the proceeding as |
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| 56 | 56 | | ordered by the court. |
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| 57 | 57 | | (d) If a guardianship of the estate is created, a person or |
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| 58 | 58 | | entity who paid any costs on the filing of the proceeding is |
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| 59 | 59 | | entitled to be reimbursed out of the guardianship estate for the |
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| 60 | 60 | | costs if: |
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| 61 | 61 | | (1) the assets of the estate are sufficient to cover |
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| 62 | 62 | | the reimbursement of the costs; and |
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| 63 | 63 | | (2) the person or entity has not been ordered by the |
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| 64 | 64 | | court to pay the costs as all or part of the payment of court costs |
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| 65 | 65 | | under Subsection (c). |
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| 66 | 66 | | (e) If at any time after a guardianship of the estate is |
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| 67 | 67 | | created there are sufficient estate assets to pay the amount of any |
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| 68 | 68 | | of the costs exempt from payment under Subsection (a-2), the court |
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| 69 | 69 | | shall require the guardian to pay out of the guardianship estate to |
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| 70 | 70 | | the court clerk for deposit in the county treasury the amount of any |
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| 71 | 71 | | of those costs. |
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| 72 | 72 | | SECTION 2. Sections 1052.051(d), (e), and (f), Estates |
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| 73 | 73 | | Code, are repealed. |
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| 74 | 74 | | SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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| 75 | 75 | | a guardianship proceeding filed on or after the effective date of |
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| 76 | 76 | | this Act. A guardianship proceeding filed before the effective |
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| 77 | 77 | | date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the |
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| 78 | 78 | | proceeding was filed, and the former law is continued in effect for |
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| 79 | 79 | | that purpose. |
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| 80 | 80 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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