Probate Code section 880
(a)
The legal duties imposed on a fiduciary charged with managing tangible property apply to the management of digital assets, including all of the following:(1)
The duty of care.(2)
The duty of loyalty.(3)
The duty of confidentiality.(b)
All of the following shall apply to a fiduciary’s or designated recipient’s authority with respect to a digital asset of a user:(1)
Except as otherwise provided in Section 873, a fiduciary’s or designated recipient’s authority is subject to the applicable terms-of-service agreement.(2)
A fiduciary’s or designated recipient’s authority is subject to other applicable law, including copyright law.(3)
In the case of a fiduciary, a fiduciary’s authority is limited by the scope of the fiduciary’s duties.(4)
A fiduciary’s or designated recipient’s authority may not be used to impersonate the user.(c)
A fiduciary with authority over the property of a decedent or settlor has the right of access to any digital asset in which the decedent or settlor had a right or interest and that is not held by a custodian or subject to a terms-of-service agreement. Nothing in this subdivision requires a custodian to share passwords or decrypt protected devices.(d)
A fiduciary acting within the scope of the fiduciary’s duties is an authorized user of the property of the decedent or settlor for the purpose of applicable computer-fraud and unauthorized-computer-access laws.(e)
The following shall apply to a fiduciary with authority over the tangible, personal property of a decedent or settlor:(1)
The fiduciary has the right to access the property and any digital asset stored in it. Nothing in this subdivision requires a custodian to share passwords or decrypt protected devices.(2)
The fiduciary is an authorized user for purposes of any applicable computer-fraud and unauthorized-computer-access laws.(f)
A custodian may disclose information in an account to a fiduciary of the decedent or settlor when the information is required to terminate an account used to access digital assets licensed to the user.(g)
A fiduciary of a decedent or settlor may request a custodian to terminate the user’s account. A request for termination shall be in writing, in either physical or electronic form, and accompanied by all of the following:(1)
If the user is deceased, a certified copy of the death certificate of the user.(2)
A certified copy of the letter of appointment of the representative, a small-estate affidavit under Section 13101, a court order, a certified copy of the trust instrument, or a certification of the trust under Section 18100.5 giving the fiduciary authority over the account.(3)
If requested by the custodian, any of the following:(A)
A number, username, address, or other unique subscriber or account identifier assigned by the custodian to identify the user’s account.(B)
Evidence linking the account to the user.(C)
A finding by the court that the user had a specific account with the custodian, identifiable by the information specified in subparagraph (A).
Source:
Section 880, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=880.
(accessed May 4, 2025).