Does a Joint Bank Account With My Parent Belong to Me or the Estate in BC?
This answer covers the law of British Columbia.
Whether you keep the money depends on what your parent intended when they added you to the account. Under Pecore v. Pecore, 2007 SCC 17, a gratuitous transfer to an adult child, including adding them to a joint account, is presumed to be held on resulting trust for the parent, so the survivor must prove the parent intended them to have the right of survivorship in the balance.
A judge weighs all the evidence on a balance of probabilities to find your parent's actual intention at the time of the transfer, and the presumption decides the case only if the evidence is insufficient. Evidence of who used and controlled the account is of marginal help and is not determinative alone. The presumption of a gift does not apply to adult children, although an adult child's dependency on the parent can be strong evidence against the resulting trust.
Because the answer turns on intention, the paperwork from when the account was opened, the account statements and anything your parent said or wrote about their wishes can matter. If the estate and the survivor disagree, a lawyer can explain how the evidence is likely to be viewed.
Key takeaways
- A gratuitous transfer to an adult child, including adding them to a joint account, is presumed to be held on resulting trust for the parent.
- The survivor must prove the parent intended them to have the right of survivorship in the balance.
- The judge looks at all the evidence to find the parent's actual intention at the time of the transfer, and the presumption decides the case only if the evidence is insufficient.
- Using and controlling the account is only marginal help on its own, while an adult child's dependency on the parent can be strong evidence against the resulting trust.