Bank accounts owned by a married couple are protected from the creditors of either spouse if the account is owned as tenants by the entireties. When a married couple opens a new bank account, they can choose (usually on their signature card) how they want to title the account. Some…
Opening a tenants by entireties account at a financial institution can be complicated as there are many legal pitfalls on the path to a protected entireties account. The court in one bankruptcy case (In re Givans) held that conveying an entireties bank account to a joint revocable living trust forfeits…
Tenants by entireties bank accounts can be tricky. Florida law provides that a joint marital bank account is presumed to be an exempt tenancy by entireties account unless there is contrary evidence. The issue is what constitutes contrary evidence sufficient to overcome the legal presumption and make the bank account…
In general, personal property acquired jointly by spouses in Florida is presumed to be owned as tenants by entireties. However, the rules can get tricky when it comes to opening a tenants by entireties bank account. There are many instances of people who incorrectly believed they had established exempt joint…
Florida law protecting tenants by entireties bank accounts from garnishment against one spouse is based mostly on the Florida Supreme Court decision in the Beal Bank case. Most attorneys, on the debtor and creditor sides, believe that case established the rule that marital joint accounts with rights of survivorship are…
Tenants by entireties assets are not protected from either spouse’s IRS debts. If the IRS acquires an income tax lien on one spouse who had filed separately the IRS lien attaches to the delinquent spouse’s interest in tenants by entireties property. The U.S. Supreme Court held that tenants by entireties…
People who are moving to Florida often want to examine the exemption of their previously acquired assets under Florida law. The status of previously opened joint bank accounts is particularly confusing for people relocating in Florida. Consider the common situation where prior to moving to Florida married couple open a…
Courts have discussed, and disagreed, whether a individual judgment debtors interest in a joint marital federal tax refund is protected tenants by entireties property. The U.S. Supreme Court held that the IRS may garnish a joint marital tax refund to collect taxes owed by either spouse individually. Some bankruptcy courts…
Courts have discussed, and disagreed, whether a individual judgment debtors interest in a joint marital federal tax refund is protected tenants by entireties property. The U.S. Supreme Court held that the IRS may garnish a joint marital tax refund to collect taxes owed by either spouse individually. Some bankruptcy courts…
Tenants by entireties bank accounts are exempt under Florida law and cannot be garnished by a creditor of either spouse. However, entireties accounts of Florida residents are more difficult to enforce in courts outside of Florida. A creditor of one of our clients is attempted a creative way to garnish…
