Arizona Laws 14-6212. Death of a party; rights of survivors
A. Except as otherwise provided in this section, on the death of a party, sums on deposit in a multiple party account belong to the surviving party or parties. If two or more parties survive and one is the surviving spouse of the decedent, the amount to which the decedent, immediately before death, was beneficially entitled under section 14-6211 belongs to the surviving spouse. If two or more parties survive and none is the surviving spouse of the decedent, the amount to which the decedent, immediately before death, was beneficially entitled under section 14-6211 belongs to the surviving parties in equal shares and augments the proportion to which each survivor, immediately before the decedent’s death, was beneficially entitled under section 14-6211. The right of survivorship continues between the surviving parties.
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 14-6212
- Account: means a contract of deposit between a depositor and a financial institution and includes a checking account, savings account, certificate of deposit and share account. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Beneficiary: means a person to whom sums on deposit in an account are payable on request after the death of all parties or for whom a party is named as a trustee. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Decedent: A deceased person.
- Estate: includes the property of the decedent, trust or other person whose affairs are subject to this title as originally constituted and as it exists from time to time during administration. See Arizona Laws 14-1201
- Financial institution: means an organization authorized to do business under state or federal laws relating to financial institutions and includes a bank, trust company, savings bank, building and loan association, savings and loan company or association and credit union. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Multiple party account: means an account payable on request to one or more of two or more parties, whether or not a right of survivorship is mentioned. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Party: means a person who, by the terms of an account and subject to a request, has a present right other than as a beneficiary or agent to payment from the account. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Request: means a request for payment that complies with all terms of the account, including special requirements concerning necessary signatures and rules of the financial institution, and that, if terms of the account condition payment on advance notice, is treated as immediately effective. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Right of survivorship: The ownership rights that result in the acquisition of title to property by reason of having survived other co-owners.
- Sums on deposit: means the balance payable on an account, including interest and dividends earned, whether or not included in the current balance and any deposit life insurance proceeds added to the account by reason of death of a party. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
- Survive: means that a person has neither predeceased an event, including the death of another person, nor is deemed to have predeceased an event under section 14-2104 or 14-2702. See Arizona Laws 14-1201
- Tenancy in common: A type of property ownership in which two or more individuals have an undivided interest in property. At the death of one tenant in common, his (her) fractional percentage of ownership in the property passes to the decedent
- Terms of the account: includes the deposit agreement and other terms and conditions of the contract of deposit and includes the contract form. See Arizona Laws 14-6201
B. In an account with a pay on death designation:
1. On the death of one of two or more parties, the rights in sums on deposit are governed by subsection A of this section.
2. On the death of the sole party or the last survivor of two or more parties, sums on deposit belong to the surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries. If two or more beneficiaries survive, sums on deposit belong to them in equal and undivided shares. Thereafter there is no right of survivorship in the event of death of a beneficiary. If no beneficiary survives sums on deposit belong to the estate of the last surviving party.
C. Sums on deposit in a single party account without a pay on death designation or in a multiple party account that, by the terms of the account, is without right of survivorship, are not affected by the death of a party. However, the amount to which the decedent, immediately before death, was beneficially entitled under section 14-6211 is transferred as part of the decedent’s estate. A pay on death designation in a multiple party account without right of survivorship is ineffective. For purposes of this subsection, designation of an account as a tenancy in common establishes that the account is without right of survivorship.
D. The ownership right of a surviving party or beneficiary or of the decedent’s estate in sums on deposit is subject to requests for payment made by a party before the party’s death, whether paid by the financial institution before or after death or unpaid. The surviving party or beneficiary or the decedent’s estate is liable to the payee of an unpaid request for payment. The liability is limited to a proportionate share of the amount transferred under this section to the extent necessary to discharge the request for payment.