1-1     By:  Naishtat (Senate Sponsor - Wentworth)             H.B. No. 952
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 23, 2001;
 1-3     April 24, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
 1-4     Jurisprudence; May 8, 2001, reported favorably by the following
 1-5     vote:  Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 8, 2001, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to interstate guardianships.
 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-10           SECTION 1.  Part 5, Chapter XIII, Texas Probate Code, is
1-11     amended by adding Subpart G to read as follows:
1-12                    SUBPART G.  INTERSTATE GUARDIANSHIPS
1-13           Sec. 891.  TRANSFER OF GUARDIANSHIP TO FOREIGN JURISDICTION.
1-14     (a)  A guardian of the person or estate of a ward may apply with
1-15     the court that has jurisdiction over the guardianship to transfer
1-16     the guardianship to a court in a foreign jurisdiction if the ward
1-17     has moved permanently to the foreign jurisdiction.
1-18           (b)  Notice of the application to transfer a guardianship
1-19     under this section shall be served personally on the ward and shall
1-20     be given to the foreign court to which the guardianship is to be
1-21     transferred.
1-22           (c)  On the court's own motion or on the motion of the ward
1-23     or any interested person, the court shall hold a hearing to
1-24     consider the application to transfer the guardianship.
1-25           (d)  The court shall transfer a guardianship to a foreign
1-26     court if the court determines the transfer is in the best interests
1-27     of the ward.  The transfer of the guardianship must be made
1-28     contingent on the acceptance of the guardianship in the foreign
1-29     jurisdiction.  To facilitate the orderly transfer of the
1-30     guardianship, the court shall coordinate efforts with the
1-31     appropriate foreign court.
1-32           Sec. 892.  RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE OF FOREIGN GUARDIANSHIP.
1-33     (a)  A guardian appointed by a foreign court to represent an
1-34     incapacitated person who is residing in this state or intends to
1-35     move to this state may file an application with a court in which
1-36     the ward resides or intends to reside to have the guardianship
1-37     transferred to the court.
1-38           (b)  Notice of the application for receipt and acceptance of
1-39     a foreign guardianship under this section shall be served
1-40     personally on the ward and shall be given to the foreign court from
1-41     which the guardianship is to be transferred.
1-42           (c)  If an application for receipt and acceptance of a
1-43     foreign guardianship is filed in two or more courts with
1-44     jurisdiction, the proceeding shall be heard in the court with
1-45     jurisdiction over the application filed on the earliest date if
1-46     venue is otherwise proper in that court.   A court that does not
1-47     have venue to hear the application shall transfer the proceeding to
1-48     the proper court.
1-49           (d)  In reviewing an application for receipt and acceptance
1-50     of a foreign guardianship, the court should determine:
1-51                 (1)  that the proposed guardianship is not a collateral
1-52     attack on an existing or proposed guardianship in another
1-53     jurisdiction in this or another state; and
1-54                 (2)  for a guardianship in which a court in one or more
1-55     states may have jurisdiction, that the application has been filed
1-56     in the court that is best suited to consider the matter.
1-57           (e)  On the court's own motion or on the motion of the ward
1-58     or any interested person, the court shall hold a hearing to
1-59     consider the application for receipt and acceptance of a foreign
1-60     guardianship.
1-61           (f)  The court shall grant an application for receipt and
1-62     acceptance of a foreign guardianship if the transfer of the
1-63     guardianship from the foreign jurisdiction is in the best interests
1-64     of the ward.  In granting an application under this subsection, the
 2-1     court shall give full faith and credit to the provisions of the
 2-2     foreign guardianship order concerning the determination of the
 2-3     ward's incapacity and the rights, powers, and duties of the
 2-4     guardian.
 2-5           (g)  The court shall coordinate efforts with the appropriate
 2-6     foreign court to facilitate the orderly transfer of the
 2-7     guardianship.
 2-8           (h)  The denial of an application for receipt and acceptance
 2-9     of a guardianship under this section does not affect the right of a
2-10     guardian appointed by a foreign court to file an application to be
2-11     appointed guardian of the incapacitated person under Section 682 of
2-12     this code.
2-13           Sec. 893.  REVIEW OF TRANSFERRED GUARDIANSHIP.  Not later
2-14     than the 90th day after the date a court grants an application for
2-15     receipt and acceptance of a foreign guardianship under Section 892
2-16     of this code, the court shall hold a hearing to consider modifying
2-17     the administrative procedures or requirements of the transferred
2-18     guardianship in accordance with local and state law.
2-19           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
2-20                                  * * * * *