[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/how-to-use-joint-accounts-and-beneficiary-designations-greenwich-ct-white-plains-ny\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/how-to-use-joint-accounts-and-beneficiary-designations-greenwich-ct-white-plains-ny\/","headline":"How to Use Joint Accounts and Beneficiary Designations","name":"How to Use Joint Accounts and Beneficiary Designations","description":"\u201cWe need to make sure your legal toolbox has the right tools for the job and that you understand how each of them work, just like an owner\u2019s manual.\u201d A will is a very important part of your estate plan, but it\u2019s not the only tool in your estate planning toolbox, explains the article “Protecting […]","datePublished":"2020-12-30","dateModified":"2024-04-02","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/author\/amorusolaw\/#Person","name":"Amoruso & Amoruso LLP","url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/author\/amorusolaw\/","identifier":5,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12de032c04195e9c39a06a6d6eea182f7b4fa655c20e245f8094a244b5cdd0cb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12de032c04195e9c39a06a6d6eea182f7b4fa655c20e245f8094a244b5cdd0cb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Amoruso & Amoruso LLP","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/amoruso-logo.svg","url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/amoruso-logo.svg","width":0,"height":0}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6a01901dd0a082970b026be42fee19.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6a01901dd0a082970b026be42fee19.jpg","height":853,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/how-to-use-joint-accounts-and-beneficiary-designations-greenwich-ct-white-plains-ny\/","about":["Beneficiary","Estate Planning","Joint Account","Probate","Will"],"wordCount":620,"keywords":["Beneficiary","Estate Planning","Joint Account","Probate","Will"],"articleBody":"\u201cWe need to make sure your legal toolbox has the right tools for the job and that you understand how each of them work, just like an owner\u2019s manual.\u201dA will is a very important part of your estate plan, but it\u2019s not the only tool in your estate planning toolbox, explains the article “Protecting Your Assets: Joint Accounts and Beneficiary Designations” from The Street. That is because the will goes through probate, wills control assets that are in your name only, and lastly, if you don\u2019t have a will, the laws of your state will create a will for you. You may not like the distribution, but you won\u2019t be there to see what happens.As an alternative to a will and probate, some people name their children as beneficiaries for assets. Sometimes this can work, but it\u2019s not always the best solution.Here\u2019s an example. A family includes two spouses and three children. They own a house, a bank account, IRAs and life insurance policies. The spouses have individual wills, leaving everything to each other and equally to their children upon both of their deaths.The wills also state that, if a child predeceases them, that child\u2019s share goes to the child\u2019s children. This is known as \u201cper stirpes,\u201d and means that the child\u2019s share of the parent\u2019s estate is passed to the next generation. The spouses also list each other as joint owners and beneficiaries and then their children as contingent beneficiaries on all of their financial accounts. Then the husband dies.His will does not come into play, because his wife was listed on everything as a joint owner, so all of the assets pass to her. Then the wife dies. The will won\u2019t come into play here either, since all of her living children were named as beneficiaries. If the wife had signed a quit claim deed, giving the children ownership of the family home before she died, the will and probate are bypassed as well.However, it\u2019s never so simple. What if the adult daughter was on the bank account and she is sued? The assets are now vulnerable to the party suing her. If she files for bankruptcy, the assets could be attached by the bankruptcy court. If she gets divorced, they are marital assets and could be taken by her spouse.This arrangement becomes more complicated when people attempt workarounds, like putting the good son who isn\u2019t yet married and takes excellent care of his finances as the sole beneficiary. If the parents die and the son is the only beneficiary, there\u2019s no law that says he has to share his inheritance with his siblings. This scenario is likely to lead to litigation and lasting family fractures.If you need another situation to convince you of the perils of alternatives to using a will, try remarriage.If the wife dies and the husband remarries, he may want to leave his assets to his new wife. However, then when she dies, he wants his estate to go to his children. What if he dies and she decides she doesn\u2019t want to name his children as beneficiaries on the accounts that she now owns? She is well within her legal rights to put her own children on the accounts, and when she dies, the husband\u2019s children will get nothing.People with the best intentions often create terrible financial and legal situations for loved ones that could easily be avoided by simply working with an estate planning attorney to create an estate plan that fulfills their wishes.Reference: The Street (Oct. 30, 2020) “Protecting Your Assets: Joint Accounts and Beneficiary Designations“"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to Use Joint Accounts and Beneficiary Designations","item":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/how-to-use-joint-accounts-and-beneficiary-designations-greenwich-ct-white-plains-ny\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]