The Nature of Joint Bank Accounts

Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 46:2B-11, every account with two names is deemed to be a "joint" bank account under New Jersey law. That is, it is irrelevant as to whether the language is "or", "and" or just has joint names. The account is deemed to be owned by each person in its entirety.

Therefore, as pointed out in many of my blogs, it is dangerous to maintain a joint account in the names of the applicant or others, since the presumption will be that all the funds in the account are owned by the applicant. This presumption can be rebutted by specific proof that the co-holder contributed to the account. In such case, a withdrawal of the co-holder's funds would not be a transfer.

Post 1 points out that it is recommended that joint accounts between applicant and spouse be terminated within 90 days pursuant to the 90-day rule.

The nature of joint accounts is governed by state law and maintaining a joint account between the applicant and another could endanger Medicaid eligibility. In Post 21, I pointed out that if the co-holder predeceases the applicant, the monies would be presumed to pass to the applicant by operation of law, which raises another problem.

The recommendation is that joint accounts between the applicant and another, particularly the spouse, be terminated.

Disclaimer: This article does not constitute legal advice and each person may have unique facts for which legal consultation may be necessary.
© March 2011, Post 139