Hall v. Cornish

Opinion

WIENER, J. Jane Denham Cornish, executrix of the estate of Janet C. Drucker, deceased, appeals the orders determining Ann C. Hall to be the owner as surviving joint tenant of (1) a bank account at La Jolla Bank & Trust Company (La Jolla account) and (2) the proceeds of a $25,000 treasury bill. Although the source of the La Jolla account and the treasury bill was a joint tenancy account between Drucker and Hall, those items were in Drucker’s name alone at the time of her death. Because the joint tenancy was not a true joint tenancy we reverse with instructions to enter orders in favor of the executrix.

In August 1981, Hall petitioned under Probate Code section 851.5 for a declaration that she was the sole owner as surviving joint tenant of the La Jolla account opened by Janet Drucker, deceased. Finding Hall owned the account, the court granted her motion for judgment on the pleadings and [512]ordered Cornish to give the money in the account to Hall. This court reversed the judgment in an unpublished opinion (4 Civ. No. 26554) because Hall had not established a joint tenancy account by a writing as required by Civil Code section 683 and Financial Code section 852. The opinion said: “Nevertheless, this case should be remanded for trial because Hall contends the funds deposited by Drucker into the account were withdrawn from a separate account held in joint tenancy by Drucker and Hall. The significance of this contention was not pursued by the superior court due to the erroneous award of judgment on the pleadings based on the writings. If at trial Hall can prove the source of the funds was indeed a joint tenancy account owned by Drucker and herself, the new account opened by Drucker ordinarily would also be held in joint tenancy despite the lack of a sufficient writing.

“ ‘Contrary to the common law rule, if money is taken from a joint tenancy account in a California bank during the joint lives of the depositors, property acquired with the money so withdrawn, or another account into which the money is traced, has the character of property held in joint tenancy, unless there has been a change in the character by some, agreement between the parties.’ (9 CALJUR (3d ed. 1974) Banks, etc., § 115, p. 326.)

“A joint tenancy account does not lose its status as such when one of the joint tenants withdraws the funds and reinvests them (Estate of Harris, 9 Cal.2d 649; Taylor v. Crocker-Citizens Nat. Bank, 258 Cal.App.2d 682; Cordasco v. Scalero, supra, 203 Cal.App.2d 95; Wallace v. Riley, 23 Cal.App.2d 654; Estate of McCoin, 9 Cal.App.2d 480). Therefore, although a finding of a joint tenancy cannot be supported by any of the writings in evidence here, given the proper evidentiary showing, a joint tenancy may be proved by tracing the source of the funds in the account. The award of judgment on the pleadings to either party would be improper.” (Italics supplied.)