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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to certain joint accounts with rights of survivorship. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 439, Texas Probate Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (e) to read as |
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follows: |
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(a) Except as provided by Subsection (e), sums [Sums] |
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remaining on deposit at the death of a party to a joint account |
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belong to the surviving party or parties against the estate of the |
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decedent if, by a written agreement signed by the party who dies, |
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the interest of such deceased party is made to survive to the |
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surviving party or parties. Notwithstanding any other law, an |
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agreement is sufficient to confer an absolute right of survivorship |
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on parties to a joint account under this subsection if the agreement |
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states in substantially the following form: "On the death of one |
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party to a joint account, all sums in the account on the date of the |
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death vest in and belong to the surviving party as his or her |
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separate property and estate." A survivorship agreement will not |
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be inferred from the mere fact that the account is a joint account. |
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If there are two or more surviving parties, their respective |
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ownerships during lifetime shall be in proportion to their previous |
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ownership interests under Section 438 of this code augmented by an |
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equal share for each survivor of any interest the decedent may have |
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owned in the account immediately before his death, and the right of |
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survivorship continues between the surviving parties if a written |
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agreement signed by a party who dies so provides. |
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(e) Notwithstanding any other law, sums remaining on |
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deposit at the death of a party to a joint account with a written |
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agreement as described by Subsection (a) of this section belong to |
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the estate of the deceased party if there is one surviving party and |
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the surviving party is not the deceased party's beneficiary under a |
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will or other dispository document. In any action or proceeding |
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contesting the validity of the financial institution's payment of |
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sums under this section, the burden of proof is on the surviving |
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party to prove the deceased party's intent to confer a right of |
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survivorship on the surviving party. |
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SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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an account created on or after the effective date of this Act. An |
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account created before the effective date of this Act is governed by |
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the law in effect when the account was created, and the former law |
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is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |