Also known as: survivorship doctrine · right of survivorship
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A principle of concurrent ownership under which the interest of a deceased joint tenant or co-owner passes automatically to the surviving joint tenant or tenants by operation of law rather than through probate.
Demetrius Douglas and his wife held their home as tenants by the entirety. While divorce proceedings were pending Demetrius executed a will leaving his interest in the house to his sister. Demetrius died before the divorce was final. Title to the entire house passed by operation of law to his widow rather than under the will.
Dustin Donovan died survived by his spouse Deanna. They had owned investment property as joint tenants with right of survivorship. When calculating Deanna's elective share the value of her fractional interest in the joint tenancy property was included in the augmented estate.
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Devon Drake and Dolores Diaz owned a cabin as joint tenants with right of survivorship. After their divorce became final with no agreement preserving survivorship Devon died. Dolores took only an undivided half interest as tenant in common rather than the entire cabin by survivorship.
Daphne Doyle opened a checking account at a bank titled in her name and that of her brother. The account agreement did not mention survivorship. When Daphne died the bank paid the balance to her brother as a surviving party under the multiple-party account rules.
Demetrius Douglas and Dustin Donovan owned commercial real estate as joint tenants with right of survivorship. Both died in the same accident with no clear and convincing evidence that either survived the other by 120 hours. Each half interest passed through the respective estates rather than by survivorship.
No. Property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship passes by operation of law to the survivor and cannot be disposed of by will.
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Divorce severs the joint tenancy with right of survivorship and converts the interests into a tenancy in common unless a court order or agreement expressly preserves survivorship.
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If it cannot be shown by clear and convincing evidence that one co-owner survived the other by 120 hours each is deemed to have predeceased the other and the property is divided equally between their estates.
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No. The account may or may not include a right of survivorship depending on its terms and applicable state law even though it is defined as payable to one or more of two or more parties.
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