SUMMARY - Authorizes the Probate Court to appoint the Attorney General or his designee to serve as Administrator of an estate if the Department of Human Services is seeking to recover the cost of medical assistance from the deceased.

AMENDS: 2101.24 and 2113.06
ENACTS: 5111.11 and 5111.11

SUMMARY - Substitute HB 274 as passed by the Senate amends HB 419 in several areas. The definition of a "putative father" in Ohio R.C. 3107.01 is amended to include the additional requirement that the man has not acknowledged paternity pursuant to Ohio R.C. 2105.18.

Ohio R.C. 3107.06 is amended to require that one who acknowledges paternity of a child must give written consent to adoption unless consent is not required pursuant to Ohio R.C. 3107.07.

Ohio R.C. 3107.062 is amended to include language that, "A putative father may register before, or not later than thirty days after the birth of a child."

Ohio R.C. 3107.064 is amended to provide that a court shall not issue a final decree of adoption unless a certified writing from the department of human services is filed stating that no man is registered as the putative father. A further provision is made that no court shall accept the certified statement unless the date placed on the document is at least thirty-one days after the minor's date of birth. The written statement from the Department of Health is not required if the man acknowledged paternity of the child pursuant to Ohio R.C. 2105.18.

Deletes provisions in Ohio R.C. 3107.07 which allowed the putative father to fail to register "for reasons beyond his control, other than lack of knowledge." The putative father must now register no later than thirty days after the minor's birth.

Deletes the requirement in Ohio R.C. 3107.081 that the consent forms prescribed by Ohio R.C. 3107.083 be filed within two business days of execution. Instead, such consents are to be filed at the time the petition to adopt is submitted to the court.

Ohio R.C. 3107.10 provides that the court MAY NOT issue a final decree or interlocutory order of adoption until at least 10 days after the filing of a final accounting.

Deletes language in Ohio R.C. 3107.12 that exempted stepparent adoptions from the requirement of a pre-finalization home study.

Deleted language in Ohio R.C. 3107.18 that specified that the court "of common pleas" of the county in which the person making the request resides shall order the department of health to issue a foreign birth record pursuant to Ohio R.C. 3705.12.

AMENDS: 3101.04, 3107.01, 3107.031, 3107.06, 3107.062, 3107.063, 3107.064, 3107.07, 3107.081, 3107.10, 3107.12, 3107.18, 3107.62, 3107.65
REPEALS: 3107.085 and 3107.64

SUMMARY - Provides for the nomination of a standby guardian, who need not be a resident of the county or state. The nomination is to be made in the form of a petition filed by the minor child's parents and the standby guardian shall not assume duties until after the death or incapacity of the parents. As long as the child has one living parent who is willing and capable to exercising parental rights, the standby guardianship shall be ineffective.

AMENDS: 2109.21, 2111.01, 2111.02, 2111.03, and 2111.12
ENACTS: 2111.022

SUMMARY - Gives Probate Court jurisdiction over disinterment proceedings. Establishes procedures for the disinterment of remains, pursuant to court order, upon application of a person other than the decedent's surviving spouse and permits a person to apply for a court order to prevent the decedent's surviving spouse from having the remains disinterred.

AMENDS: 517.21, 517.22, 517.223, 517.24, 517.25, 517.26, 517.29 and 1721.21

SUMMARY - Allows survivorship tenants and certain tenants in common in real property to hold title in unequal shares.

AMENDS: 5302.20

SUMMARY - This bill specifies that an attorney in fact under POA, a guardian, or conservator will be personally liable for contracts or debts of the principal; specifies that a spendthrift provision in an inter vivos or testamentary trust that holds shares of an S corporation generally does not cause forfeiture; specifies circumstances under which a trust may and may not include a provision that requires or permits the accumulation for more than one year of income from property that is granted to the testator's or settlor's surviving spouse and that qualifies for federal or Ohio Estate Tax marital deduction; specifies that a surviving spouse may elect the decedent spouse's entire interest in the mansion house as part of the intestate estate and the statutory allowance; requires the offering of a will for probate or a later will for record in Ohio within 3 months after a decedent's death in order to defeat a bona fide purchaser's, lessee's, or encumbrancer's title in certain land; extends time in which to file an inventory from one to three months; allows a court involved in a wrongful death action to create a trust relative to the compensatory damages awarded for any beneficiary under 25 years of age; specifies that the consent of the Tax Commissioner is not required before transferring certain intangible personal property of a decedent to the surviving spouse and; modifies the types of institutions covered by the Uniform Management of Institutional Funds Act.

In Substitute form, the bill deleted all reference to the Uniform Multiple-Party Accounts Act, and deleted the anti-Arpadi language.

AMENDS: 1107.06, 1107.10, 1107.11, 1151.19, 1151.191, 1151.192, 1151.23, 1151.24, 1161.23, 1161.24, 1161.25, 1161.29, 1337.092, 1733.24, 2107.47, 2109.07, 2109.08, 2109.09, 2111.151, 2115.02 and 2125.03
ENACTS: 1337.092 and 1342.01 to 1342.18
REPEALS:  1107.07, 1107.08, 1107.081, 2131.10 and 2131.11

SUMMARY - Revises the law governing adoptions and access to adoption records. Among the various alterations, this Act:

1. Requires a person seeking to adopt to utilize an agency or an attorney;
2. Provides that if one fails to file objections to an adoption petition within 14 days of notice, the right to withhold consent is lost;
3. Specifies certain factors the probate court must consider when determining the best interest of a child;
4. Provides that the consent of the father is not required in cases of rape;
5. In a stepparent adoption, the consent of the natural parent married to the stepparent is not required if that parent supports the adoption;
6. Establishes certain requirements that must be met for a parent to consent to a child's adoption or enter into a voluntary permanent custody surrender agreement;
7. Requires ODHS to establish a Putative Father Registry and requires a putative father, in the case of a child born after January 1, 1997, to register as a condition to his consent being required to the child's adoption;
8. Requires that the adoption petition be submitted no later than 90 days after the child has been placed in the prospective parent's home, but failure to timely file will not affect the jurisdiction of a probate court;
9. Alters the law governing financial disclosure of expenses to require preliminary estimates and final accountings;
10. Allows persons adopted pursuant to foreign adoption decree, recognized in Ohio, to petition a common pleas court to order the Department of Health to issue a foreign birth certificate;
11. Eliminates the statutory definition of "child with special needs";
12. Provides that an adoptee adopted on or after June 20, 1996 may receive identifying information about the birth parents from the Department of Health unless the birth parent checks the "no" space on the ODHS adoption form or signs a denial of release;
13. Allows the ODHS to assist a birth parent or sibling in finding the name by adoption of an adoptee who becomes available for adoption on or after June 20, 1996;
14. Allows birth parent, prospective adoptive parents and birth relative to enter non-binding open adoption;
15. Allows adoptees, adoptive parents, adoptive family members, birth parents, birth siblings and birth family members to receive non-identifying information if the adoptee becomes available for adoption on or after June 20, 1996;
16. Provides for an agency or attorney to give an adoptee or adoptive parent materials, photographs of a birth parent as well as the first name of the birth parent if authorized.

AMENDS: 149.43; 1347.08; 2151.28, 2151.281, 2151.353, 2151.412, 2151.413, 2151.414,2151.415, 2151.416, 3107.01, 3107.06, 3107.07, 3107.08, 3107.10, 3107.11, 3107.12, 3107.121, 3107.13, 3107.14, 3107.17, 3107.18, 3170.19, 3107.39, 3107.40, 3705.12, 3705.24, 3705.29, 3705.99, 5103.02, 5103.03, 5103.15, 5103.152, 5103.16, 5103.17 and 5153.163
ENACTS: 3107.121, 5103.152, 3107.051, 3107.061, 3107.081, 3107.082, 3107.083, 3107.122, 3107.123, 3107.131, 3107.38, 3107.45, 3107.53, 3107.60 to 3107.67, 3705.241, 5103.14, 5103.151, 5103.153, 5103.161 and 5103.162

SUMMARY - Enables only a parent, guardian or service provider, who has custody over a person to be institutionalized, to file an affidavit of involuntary institutionalization. Requires the affiant to request MRDD to conduct an assessment of the persons needs no later than 30 days after the date of request. Authorizes the probate court to order an MRDD board to develop a community alternative to institutionalization, if funds and sources are available.

AMENDS: 308.10, 5123.043, 5123.74, 5123.76, 5126.01, 5126.011, 5126.02, 5126.03, 5126.032, 5126.033, 5126.04, 5126.041, 5126.05, 5126.051, 5126.052, 5126.054, 5126.11, 5126.28, 5126.38 and 5126.41
ADOPTS: 5126.042, 5126.042, 5126.021, 5126.022, 5126.06, 5126.043, 5126.045, 5126.053, 5126.024, 5123.052
ENACTS: 5126.03, 5126.031, 5126.04 and 5126.041
REPEALS: 5126.031, 5126.053 and 5126.057

SUMMARY - Provides that the county recorder shall retain a record of declarations executed pursuant to Ohio R.C. 2133.02 and durable powers of attorney for health care executed pursuant to Ohio R.C. 1337.12. A fee of at least fourteen dollars, but no more than twenty dollars shall be charged. The county recorder is charged with distributing, free of charge, a copy of the printed declaration and durable power of attorney, if so requested.

As enacted, the bill also provides that a document presented to a clerk of a court of record for filing may be refused if the clerk has reasonable cause to believe the document is materially false or fraudulent. No duty is imposed upon the clerk to inspect, evaluate or investigate a document presented. Any person filing a materially false or fraudulent document is liable in a civil action to any person harmed by such violation for injury, death or loss to person or property.

AMENDS: 317.08, 317.13, 317.32, 317.33, 2931.03 and 2921.13
ENACTS: 111.24, 317.41, 2701.20 and 2921.52

SUMMARY - Amends Ohio R.C. 2109.371 to allow a fiduciary to make investments in securities of affiliated investment companies and provides that a reasonable fee for investment advisement may be charged. All such affiliated investments shall be reported in the periodic account statements and reflect the net value of shares comprising the investment in the affiliated company. If an affiliated investment is a mutual fund, the fiduciary shall disclose in writing that the fund is not insured or guaranteed by the FCIC.

Exceptions to the investment may be filed in the probate court, unless the trust instrument provided for investments in affiliated companies. Such exceptions shall be signed by all persons permitted by Ohio R.C. 2109.33 to except to an account and shall request termination of the investment. If the exception complies with the requirement of Ohio R.C. 2109.371 (C)(2) the probate court shall establish a schedule for disposing of the investment. However, the fiduciary shall not be liable for any loss incurred by termination of the investment. Section 3107.15 is amended to modify some language so as to be gender neutral.

AMENDS: 2109.371, 2109.44 and 3107.15

SUMMARY - Requires that prior to the transfer of real property held in trust, the trustee/agent present an affidavit to the auditor. The affidavit must contain the following: 1) location of the trust; 2) powers of the trustee and 3) name of the person who transferred the real property to the trust. The affidavit would be required to be filed with the county recorder of the county in which such property is located.

Furthermore, the bill requires a successor trustee to present to the auditor and file with the recorder, within 30 days of the prior trustee's termination, an affidavit stating: 1) the name of the prior trustee; 2) the names and addresses of all trustees; and 3) a description of the real property in the trust. In the case of a prior trustee's death, the affidavit must be accompanied by a certified copy of the death certificate.

AMENDS: 117.38, 149.42, 305.33, 305.37, 317.22, 319.11, 319.12, 319.20, 319.35, 319.36, 319.38, 325.31, 1340.22, 3734.122, 3734.20, 3734.22, 5705.313, 5713.19, 5715.03, 5722.03, 5722.04, 5723.06, 5723.12, and 5739.021
ENACTS: 315.251, 319.04, 319.203, and 5302.171
REPEALS: 329.091

SUMMARY - Excludes from a decedent's estate, for purposes of taxation, the value of annuities and other payments to the extent contributed by the decedent's employer by reason of employment.

AMENDS: 5731.09

SUMMARY - Provides that the judge of a probate court may be disqualified after a party files an affidavit of disqualification with the Clerk of the Supreme Court. The probate judge may be disqualified if the judge allegedly has a bias or prejudice for or against a party or the party's counsel, or is otherwise interested in the proceedings.

The affidavit must be filed with the Clerk not less than seven calendar days before the day on which the next hearing is scheduled. Said affidavit must include: 1) specific allegations of bias and prejudice; 2) support of those allegations; 3) a statement of the date of the next scheduled hearing and; 4) a certificate indicating that a copy of the affidavit was served on the judge and all other parties. Upon receipt of a timely filed affidavit, the Clerk shall notify the probate judge, who must enter the fact of the filing of the affidavit on the docket.

An affidavit of disqualification generally deprives the judge of any authority to preside in the proceeding involved, until the Chief Justice rules on the affidavit. The judge continues to have authority to determine any matter that does not affect any substantive right of any of the parties.

If a second affidavit of disqualification is filed, after the first was denied, the judge involved may continue to preside over the proceeding prior to a ruling by the Chief Justice.

AMENDS: 2101.39, 2501.13, 2701.03 and 2937.20
AMENDS AND RE-NUMBERS: 2701.03

SUMMARY - Upon finding a defendant to be Incompetent to Stand Trial (IST), the court would be required to order treatment as a facility operated by the Department of Mental Health, Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities or any facility certified by those departments. No defendant committed for treatment in an attempt to restore competency may be voluntarily admitted to a hospital or institution.

Furthermore, no defendant found IST may be required to undergo treatment (for restoration of competency) for longer than: A) One year, if the offense charged is aggravated murder or an act of violence that is a felony of the first or second degree; B) Six months, if the offense charged is a felony, other than those described in paragraph (A) and; C) Thirty days, if the offense is a misdemeanor.

Upon expiration of the maximum time for treatment, the court is required to dismiss the indictment. The chief clinical office must notice the prosecutor at least 10 days prior to the date of discharge. The prosecutor may file an affidavit with the Probate Court seeking civil commitment. In such case, the defendant may be detained an additional 10 days, pending the probate commitment.

If a defendant is charged with aggravated murder and found to be IST, after the expiration of the maximum time for treatment for restoration, one of the following would apply: 1) Prosecutor would file an affidavit in the Probate Court or; 2) The court would be permitted to retain jurisdiction if after a hearing, the court finds both of the following by clear and convincing evidence: a) The defendant committed the crime and was found to be IST and; b) The defendant is a "mentally ill person subject to hospitalization by the court order." If the hearing is conducted to determine retaining jurisdiction and both of the findings in paragraph (2) above are not made, the court is required to dismiss, unless an affidavit for civil commitment is filed in the Probate Court.

AMENDS: 2921.01, 2931.34, 2935.03, 2945.37, 2945.371, 2945.38, 2945.391, 2945.392, 2945.40, 5119.01, 5119.62, 5120.16, 5122.01, 5122.02, 5122.05, 5122.26, 5122.30, 5122.31, 5123.01, 5123.04, 5123.21, 5123.69, 5123.701, 5123.71, 5123.72, 5123.76, 5123.79, and 5123.80
ENACTS: 2945.39, 2945.401, 2945.402, 5113.57, 5122.011, and 5123.011