Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Michigan
Certificate of Deposit in Bank
There is a CD maturing with title to two people who have both passed, grandmother and daughter. Before contacting the bank, if there is no beneificiary information found, does the spouse get title to the cd or if the beneficiary information is not located, does it have to go to probate? The cd is small. What is the cost of probate in MI? It just seems redundant to have to prove to court with lawyer fees that you are the beneficiary because you can't find your copy of beneficiary information and the bank doesn't have to prove that there was a beneficiary?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Certificate of Deposit in Bank
The priority is as follows:
Surviving co-owner, then estate of last to die co-owner. The facts you provide indicate that a small estate proceeding may be proper. This is done at the Probate Court in the county in which the surviving co-owner lived. It is a summary proceeding (meaning opened and closed at the same time) and does not require a hearing.
Re: Certificate of Deposit in Bank
First of all, you can do it yourself if you have the desire and save the attorney fees. It is easier to hire a lawyer however. As far as who gets it, if the grandmother and daughter owned it jointly with full rights of survivorship, and the grandmother died first, upon the death of the grandmother the entire CD went to the dcaughter. Upon the death of the daughter, it goes to the daughter's spouse, assuming the CD is small. William S. Stern
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