An act to amend Sections 6501, 6534, 6561, 6584, and 6592 of, and to add Article 7 (commencing with Section 6593) to Chapter 6 of Division 3 of, the Business and Professions Code, to amend Section 13401 of the Corporations Code, and to amend Sections 60.1, 1510, 1821, 2250, 2614.7, and 2643.1 of, to add Part 9.5 (commencing with Section 310) to Division 2 of, and to repeal Section 2340 of, the Probate Code, relating to professional fiduciaries.
AB 1939 would create a new framework allowing licensed professional fiduciaries in California to practice through professional fiduciary professional corporations beginning January 1, 2028. The bill authorizes one or more licensees to form these corporations, requires registration with the Secretary of State, and subjects the entities and their licensed personnel to the Moscone-Knox Professional Corporation Act and additional bureau rules. It also establishes a new annual regulatory fee for such corporations of at least $1,000, and requires the Professional Fiduciaries Bureau to adopt regulations to implement and oversee the new corporate structure.
The bill also expands disclosure and reporting requirements for individual licensees. The bureau would have to keep additional information in each licensee file, and licensees would have to report whether they are serving with or under a professional fiduciary professional corporation. The annual statement filed under penalty of perjury would include more information about current cases, corporate affiliations, ownership interests, bankruptcy history, and disciplinary matters. The bill further adds failure to respond to bureau inquiries or produce requested documents as a separate ground for discipline.
AB 1939 makes conforming changes in probate law to recognize professional fiduciary professional corporations in guardianship, conservatorship, trust, and estate proceedings. Courts would be allowed to appoint such corporations in some matters, but not as guardian of the person, conservator of the person, or certain other personal-care roles. When a corporation is appointed, the petition must identify the licensed fiduciary with primary responsibility. The bill also requires fee schedules and engagement information in petitions involving professional fiduciaries, and it repeals an existing Probate Code section while adding new rules governing appointments, reporting, and compensation.
The bill’s impact on state law is significant but targeted: it updates the licensing, corporate practice, and probate appointment rules for professional fiduciaries, while also creating new confidentiality protections for corporation-wide reports submitted to the bureau. It would increase regulatory oversight and public disclosure for individual fiduciaries, but keep certain corporate client logs and investigatory reports confidential to protect privacy. The bill also includes legislative findings supporting that confidentiality limitation and states that no state reimbursement is required.
The overall sentiment appears strongly favorable and noncontroversial. The bill passed committee with unanimous votes in the recorded hearings and was recommended for the consent calendar, suggesting broad support and little opposition. No committee transcript was provided, and there is no indication of major debate in the available history.
AB 1939 would amend the Professional Fiduciaries Act, the Moscone-Knox Professional Corporation Act, and multiple Probate Code provisions to authorize and regulate professional fiduciary professional corporations. It would also expand bureau recordkeeping, public disclosure, and disciplinary authority over licensed fiduciaries, while creating new appointment rules for probate courts and new confidentiality protections for corporation-wide reports. The bill would affect licensed professional fiduciaries, the Professional Fiduciaries Bureau, the Secretary of State, probate courts, and clients whose matters are handled by fiduciaries.
The available voting history shows unanimous support at committee stages, with the bill passing 19-0 and 12-0 and being recommended for the consent calendar. That pattern suggests the measure was viewed as a technical or policy update with broad agreement rather than a contentious proposal. No committee transcript was provided, so there is no recorded floor of debate or public opposition in the supplied materials.
The main policy tension in the bill is between expanding business flexibility for professional fiduciaries and preserving oversight, client protection, and privacy. Supporters of the corporate practice framework appear to have accepted the added reporting, fee, and discipline provisions as safeguards. Potential points of concern include the new $1,000 minimum annual regulatory fee, the confidentiality of corporation-wide reports, and the limits on corporate appointments in personal guardianship and conservatorship roles. The bill also changes probate appointment procedures and requires more disclosure about fees and relationships, which could be seen as burdensome by some practitioners, though no active opposition is reflected in the vote record.