After a two-day jury trial, a Codington County jury ruled for our client, the Personal Representative, in recovering two joint accounts. The niece had been added to the aunt’s joint accounts for convenience purposes. When the aunt died, the niece kept the accounts. We were successful in obtaining a judgment against the niece for $92,617.22.
Joint accounts are a frequent source of dispute. The problem is whether or not the deceased owner of the account intended the person who they added to become the owner, or just to be able to sign checks for their elderly relative.