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Home >> Special Situations >> Deceased Individuals
Joint Account with Mother, Father says Its His by Right
My wife and her mother had a joint bank account with no other names or beneficiaries listed on it. When her mother passed away, my wife closed the joint account, and as the sole survivor, she received a check for the account balance, made out to her name alone. Now her father claims that under the "Substantive Law," he is entitled to the entire amount of money because it was from a bank account that had his wife's name on it. Does the father have any legal basis for his claim?
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 "Substantive law" is just a legal term for all the laws that define the rights and obligations of parties. It can cover Wills, account ownership, property rights, and a host of other topics. Your father-in-law's mention of "substantive law" doesn't really tell much about why he thinks he has a legal interest in those funds.
The common understanding of joint account rights is that the account becomes the property of the surviving owner(s) when one of the owners dies. Your wife and the bank acted properly, and her father seems to be attempting to claim something to which he has no right. Talk to a lawyer if you think there's any real risk your father-in-law will file suit to claim the funds.
Published on BankingQuestions.com 12/03/09
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