December 27, 2007

Ask The Lawyer

New laws and other changes for 2008

This week's question:
I have been reading your column for years and I have noticed that you usually write a column in December about new laws and other changes coming up. Can you do that again for your readers this year?

Glen G.
Almaden Valley


Dear Glen,
Thank you for reading this column, Glen. That is appreciated. I try to make it informative and interesting for my readers and part of that goal is to pass on some information about new laws that have been adopted that typically become effective with the new year. Other changes are also always happening, it seems.

It would be nice to have just one year where there are no new laws, but that would be a pure fantasyland larger than Disneyland and Disney World put together. It is a real challenge to keep up with the latest but we will give it a try.

I have selected a few of the new changes that follow. Of course, to list them all would require a lot more time and space than what is allowed.

One of the important changes is that of increased bond amounts for conservator bonds and guardian bonds. These court-required bonds are something like an insurance policy and the amounts are going much higher starting 1/1/08, regardless of when the case started. So, readers might want to make sure they have a durable power of attorney for asset management that often, but now always, will render a conservatorship proceeding in court unnecessary.

The federal estate exemption remains at $2 million for 2008 and then it goes to $3.5 million in 2009. Those figures would be doubled for a married couple. The whole system is repealed in 2010, but Congress may change that. Most experts that I read, however, are saying that little change is expected in 2008 because of election year politics.

For my notary friends, many changes are in store for California notaries beginning Jan. 1. These changes were brought about by the legislature in Sacramento passing and Gov. Schwarzenegger signing into law Assembly Bill 886 on Oct. 10.

Notary changes include different forms for notary certificates, including the removal of words “personally known to me” from the statutory acknowledgement and jurat certificates. You will now need proper identification for the notary even though you have been friends for years. And many, many more thumbprints will be needed for the notary’s journal related to various documents, not just certain deeds and deeds of trust.

You will also need to state under penalty of perjury under the laws of the state of California that the information is true and correct in the statutory acknowledgement. And much harsher penalties were adopted for certain misdeeds of notaries, largely due to serious fraud in the sub-prime real estate world. All California notaries must become thoroughly familiar with all of these changes if they have not already done so.

Another possible change is in the area of property tax reassessment when a life estate is transferred. Readers of this column will recall the Steinhart v. County of Los Angeles case discussed a few issues back. That Court of Appeal case held that “the transfer of a life estate in real property never constitutes a change of ownership.” However, the California Supreme Court has granted a petition for review, so stay tuned for further developments. The issue is now up in the air.

In the area of family law, the courthouse in Sunnyvale will now house Departments 82 (Judge Davila) and 83 (Judge Woodhouse), as of Jan. 14. The address for the courthouse is 605 W. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale, Calif. 94087. Some existing cases will be transferred there, including two of mine, and new case filings may need to be filed there, depending upon certain zip codes.

There will also be a Family Law Department in Morgan Hill when the new courthouse is completed there, expected to be sometime in 2008. I am sure our South County friends will appreciate that.

So, there you have it, Glen, some of the highlights in new laws and other changes for the new year. Best wishes for a healthy and happy new year!

Donald J. DeVries
Almaden Valley


Donald J. DeVries is an attorney practicing law in Almaden Valley. If you would like him to answer your question in his next Almaden Times column, you can reach him by e-mail at don@almadenvalleylawyers.com, fax at (408) 268-6502, telephone at (408) 268-9500, or mail at, 6475 Camden Avenue, Suite 200, San Jose, CA 95120. Your matters are personal and private, so of course, he will not disclose your identity or any details about your situation. To view Almaden Times columns since 1986 visit www.almadenvalleylawyers.com. DeVries writes this column to provide you with general information about important legal matters affecting California residents—not to give you legal advice about your specific matter. No attorney-client relationship is created by these articles. The law is complex and constantly changing and varies from state to state. So you should consult an attorney before taking any action that would affect your personal or business matters.