An investor established a joint brokerage account with one of their three adult children, registered under Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship (JTWROS). Years later, the investor executed a last will and testament stipulating that all personal property and financial holdings, regardless of registration, must be liquidated and divided equally among all three adult children. Upon receiving official notice of the investor's death, how must the broker-dealer handle the assets remaining in the account?
- Transfer full ownership of the account assets directly to the surviving adult child named on the account registration, as JTWROS rights supersede the instructions in a will.Answer
- BFreeze the account and transfer all assets into the decedent's estate to undergo probate so the executor can distribute them equally among all three children as directed by the will.
- CDistribute one-half of the account value to the surviving joint owner and transfer the remaining half to the estate for division under probate administration.
- DPlace a temporary administrative hold on fund disbursements while submitting a dispute resolution request to FINRA to arbitrate the conflict between the registration and the will.
Answer
Transfer full ownership of the account assets directly to the surviving adult child named on the account registration, as JTWROS rights supersede the instructions in a will.
In a Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship (JTWROS) account, assets pass automatically by operation of law to the surviving owner upon the death of a joint tenant. Because survivorship rights bypass probate, the provisions of a will cannot override the account registration contract.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Rights of Survivorship in JTWROS Accounts