MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY

CALIFORNIA FAMILY CODE

1100. (a) Except as provided in subdivisions (b), (c), and (d) andSections 761 and 1103, either spouse has the management and controlof the community personal property, whether acquired prior to or onor after January 1, 1975, with like absolute power of disposition,other than testamentary, as the spouse has of the separate estate ofthe spouse. (b) A spouse may not make a gift of community personal property,or dispose of community personal property for less than fair andreasonable value, without the written consent of the other spouse.This subdivision does not apply to gifts mutually given by bothspouses to third parties and to gifts given by one spouse to theother spouse. (c) A spouse may not sell, convey, or encumber community personalproperty used as the family dwelling, or the furniture, furnishings,or fittings of the home, or the clothing or wearing apparel of theother spouse or minor children which is community personal property,without the written consent of the other spouse. (d) Except as provided in subdivisions (b) and (c), and in Section1102, a spouse who is operating or managing a business or aninterest in a business that is all or substantially all communitypersonal property has the primary management and control of thebusiness or interest. Primary management and control means that themanaging spouse may act alone in all transactions but shall giveprior written notice to the other spouse of any sale, lease,exchange, encumbrance, or other disposition of all or substantiallyall of the personal property used in the operation of the business(including personal property used for agricultural purposes), whetheror not title to that property is held in the name of only onespouse. Written notice is not, however, required when prohibited bythe law otherwise applicable to the transaction. Remedies for the failure by a managing spouse to give priorwritten notice as required by this subdivision are only as specifiedin Section 1101. A failure to give prior written notice shall notadversely affect the validity of a transaction nor of any interesttransferred. (e) Each spouse shall act with respect to the other spouse in themanagement and control of the community assets and liabilities inaccordance with the general rules governing fiduciary relationshipswhich control the actions of persons having relationships of personalconfidence as specified in Section 721, until such time as theassets and liabilities have been divided by the parties or by acourt. This duty includes the obligation to make full disclosure tothe other spouse of all material facts and information regarding theexistence, characterization, and valuation of all assets in which thecommunity has or may have an interest and debts for which thecommunity is or may be liable, and to provide equal access to allinformation, records, and books that pertain to the value andcharacter of those assets and debts, upon request.

1101. (a) A spouse has a claim against the other spouse for anybreach of the fiduciary duty that results in impairment to theclaimant spouse's present undivided one-half interest in thecommunity estate, including, but not limited to, a single transactionor a pattern or series of transactions, which transaction ortransactions have caused or will cause a detrimental impact to theclaimant spouse's undivided one-half interest in the communityestate. (b) A court may order an accounting of the property andobligations of the parties to a marriage and may determine the rightsof ownership in, the beneficial enjoyment of, or access to,community property, and the classification of all property of theparties to a marriage. (c) A court may order that the name of a spouse shall be added tocommunity property held in the name of the other spouse alone or thatthe title of community property held in some other title form shallbe reformed to reflect its community character, except with respectto any of the following: (1) A partnership interest held by the other spouse as a generalpartner. (2) An interest in a professional corporation or professionalassociation. (3) An asset of an unincorporated business if the other spouse isthe only spouse involved in operating and managing the business. (4) Any other property, if the revision would adversely affect therights of a third person. (d) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any action undersubdivision (a) shall be commenced within three years of the date apetitioning spouse had actual knowledge that the transaction or eventfor which the remedy is being sought occurred. (2) An action may be commenced under this section upon the deathof a spouse or in conjunction with an action for legal separation,dissolution of marriage, or nullity without regard to the timelimitations set forth in paragraph (1). (3) The defense of laches may be raised in any action broughtunder this section. (4) Except as to actions authorized by paragraph (2), remediesunder subdivision (a) apply only to transactions or events occurringon or after July 1, 1987. (e) In any transaction affecting community property in which theconsent of both spouses is required, the court may, upon the motionof a spouse, dispense with the requirement of the other spouse'sconsent if both of the following requirements are met: (1) The proposed transaction is in the best interest of thecommunity. (2) Consent has been arbitrarily refused or cannot be obtained dueto the physical incapacity, mental incapacity, or prolonged absenceof the nonconsenting spouse. (f) Any action may be brought under this section without filing anaction for dissolution of marriage, legal separation, or nullity, ormay be brought in conjunction with the action or upon the death of aspouse. (g) Remedies for breach of the fiduciary duty by one spouse,including those set out in Sections 721 and 1100, shall include, butnot be limited to, an award to the other spouse of 50 percent, or anamount equal to 50 percent, of any asset undisclosed or transferredin breach of the fiduciary duty plus attorney's fees and court costs. The value of the asset shall be determined to be its highest valueat the date of the breach of the fiduciary duty, the date of thesale or disposition of the asset, or the date of the award by thecourt. (h) Remedies for the breach of the fiduciary duty by one spouse,as set forth in Sections 721 and 1100, when the breach falls withinthe ambit of Section 3294 of the Civil Code shall include, but not belimited to, an award to the other spouse of 100 percent, or anamount equal to 100 percent, of any asset undisclosed or transferredin breach of the fiduciary duty.

1102. (a) Except as provided in Sections 761 and 1103, eitherspouse has the management and control of the community real property,whether acquired prior to or on or after January 1, 1975, but bothspouses, either personally or by a duly authorized agent, must joinin executing any instrument by which that community real property orany interest therein is leased for a longer period than one year, oris sold, conveyed, or encumbered. (b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to apply to alease, mortgage, conveyance, or transfer of real property or of anyinterest in real property between husband and wife. (c) Notwithstanding subdivision (b): (1) The sole lease, contract, mortgage, or deed of the husband,holding the record title to community real property, to a lessee,purchaser, or encumbrancer, in good faith without knowledge of themarriage relation, shall be presumed to be valid if executed prior toJanuary 1, 1975. (2) The sole lease, contract, mortgage, or deed of either spouse,holding the record title to community real property to a lessee,purchaser, or encumbrancer, in good faith without knowledge of themarriage relation, shall be presumed to be valid if executed on orafter January 1, 1975. (d) No action to avoid any instrument mentioned in this section,affecting any property standing of record in the name of eitherspouse alone, executed by the spouse alone, shall be commenced afterthe expiration of one year from the filing for record of thatinstrument in the recorder's office in the county in which the landis situated. (e) Nothing in this section precludes either spouse fromencumbering his or her interest in community real property, asprovided in Section 2033, to pay reasonable attorney's fees in orderto retain or maintain legal counsel in a proceeding for dissolutionof marriage, for nullity of marriage, or for legal separation of theparties.

1103. (a) Where one or both of the spouses either has a conservatorof the estate or lacks legal capacity to manage and control communityproperty, the procedure for management and control (which includesdisposition) of the community property is that prescribed in Part 6(commencing with Section 3000) of Division 4 of the Probate Code. (b) Where one or both spouses either has a conservator of theestate or lacks legal capacity to give consent to a gift of communitypersonal property or a disposition of community personal propertywithout a valuable consideration as required by Section 1100 or to asale, conveyance, or encumbrance of community personal property forwhich a consent is required by Section 1100, the procedure for thatgift, disposition, sale, conveyance, or encumbrance is thatprescribed in Part 6 (commencing with Section 3000) of Division 4 ofthe Probate Code. (c) Where one or both spouses either has a conservator of theestate or lacks legal capacity to join in executing a lease, sale,conveyance, or encumbrance of community real property or any interesttherein as required by Section 1102, the procedure for that lease,sale, conveyance, or encumbrance is that prescribed in Part 6(commencing with Section 3000) of Division 4 of the Probate Code.