Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Texas
I have been paying into a saving account for years that I thought had both my wife and my names on it. When she passed, I tried to withdraw the funds and it turns out it only had my wife's name on the account and she had no one listed as the beneficiary. How do I go about getting the funds now that they have frozen the account?
2 Answers from Attorneys
The money in the account is likely to be community property. As such, if she had no children that were not also your children, then you own half and you inherit her half. If she had children that were not yours, then her children inherit her half.
The process of obtaining the money depends on the bank or other financial institution. I have recently had cases where a bank would accept a small estate affidavit or an affidavit of heirship. I have also has cases where they demanded an administration of the estate.
You should discuss this situation with a probate attorney and one of you will have to find out what the bank will accept.
If there are other assets, such as a house or car, or if there are substantial debts, then you might need an administration regardless. Good luck.
The bank may accept an affidavit of heirship. If not, then you may have to hire an attorney to open up an heirship proceeding to get the property authority document that the bank will want.
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