In re Estate of Filfiley

Facts

Mrs. Filfiley opened a trust account for her daughter, Alice Filfiley, Defendant. Later, Mrs. Filfiley then converted the trust account to a joint bank account with under herself and Defendant. One day before Mrs. Filfiley’s death, Defendant withdrew the entire amount from the joint account and deposited it into another separate account under her name. Subsequently, Mrs. Filfiley’s husband, Plaintiff,attempted to include the joint account into Mrs. Filfiley’s will.Thus, Mr. Filfiley filed a notice of election against the will. At trial, Mr. Filfiley asserted that the account was truly a convenience account, not a true joint-tenancy account. Additionally, Mr. Filfiley asserted that Mrs. Filfiley did not have the mental capacity to create the account at the time of creation.Defendant contended that Mrs. Filfiley had previously authorized her to make the withdrawal from the joint bank account. Furthermore, Mr. Filfiley and Defendant allege to be the source of the accounts funds, but neither party has introduced evidence to prove the assertion. The Surrogate’s Court of King’s County, New York held a discovery proceeding to determine Defendant’s rights to the joint bank account.