My soon to be ex-husband removed money from my personal IRA on which he is not a signatory. Is this legal in Illinois? What recourse do I have to recover the money from either him or the financial institution? Is there a statute of limitations on an action like this?
Illinois is not a community property state and even in some of the ten community property states (the laws can vary from state to state), an individually owned account should not be accessible by another person without the legal authority to do so. Call the bank and ask them under what authority your husband was able to remove the funds. Explain that you want the funds replaced as though there was no interruption. That is, you should have no record of a withdrawal for IRS reporting, and you should have interest on the entire deposit for the entire period.
If the bank is able to explain why they allowed a withdrawal, you are certainly free to verify this with an attorney. You may be able to ask your current attorney, or contact one who allows a free initial consultation. Take notes when you talk to the bank, who, when, what was said, and convey that to the attorney.
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