The Facts: My sister, Joan, suffers from mental health issues that sometimes make it difficult for her to handle her own affairs. In order to guarantee that her bills were paid on time, my sister added my brother, Joe, as a joint owner on her bank account. A few years ago Joe guaranteed a loan […]
August 5, 2013 – 12:49 pm
A question asked by many of my older clients is if the money in the joint account that they set up with their child is available to satisfy a judgment obtained against that child. In other words, can their child’s creditor remove the money in the account? While the child’s creditor cannot simply walk into […]
November 10, 2011 – 6:57 pm
The Facts: My mother opened a joint account with my sister Jane so Jane could pay my mother’s bills. At the time of her death, my mother had $100,000 in the joint account. Jane is claiming that the money in the account is hers since she is the joint account holder. My mother always said she […]
The Facts: I have an IRA with a balance of $400,000 and a life insurance policy with a $400,000 death benefit. I was advised that if I name my son Mark as the beneficiary of my IRA, and my son Steven as the beneficiary of the life insurance, Mark will end up with less money. The […]
January 21, 2010 – 7:17 pm
The Facts: I recently went to the bank where I had a checking account with a balance that reflected over 50% of my estate. The account was in my name only. I am not well and am living with my son. I have two other children who, according to my Will, are to share equally in […]
The Facts: In her Will my mother directs that her estate be divided equally between me and my two siblings. One of my sisters is named as a joint account holder on my mother’s checking account. The Question: Is my sister entitled to the balance in the joint account in addition to a full 1/3 share of […]
