Q: Hello, my grandma has recently passed away. She has a will from years ago she and her late husband had stating the
…house and assets would be left to his step daughter. A few years ago she had gone into the bank to place me as her beneficiary for the account. Would they still honor the will or does me being beneficiary of the bank account override that?
A: The bank account designation puts the account outside the probate estate. That means it goes to you, not in accordance with the will.
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A: In California, assets passed via a beneficiary designation, such as a payable on death designation on a bank account, generally bypass the probate process and are not controlled by the terms of a will. Therefore, as the named beneficiary of your grandmother’s bank account, you would inherit the funds in the account directly, irrespective of the instructions in her will. The rest of her estate, including the house, would be distributed according to the terms of the will, and it seems in this case, to her stepdaughter.
1 user found this answer helpful
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