A Safe Deposit Box may be jointly owned and/or jointly leased, that does not mean that the “contents” are jointly owned.

The registration of a safe deposit box may have nothing to do with ownership of the contents of the box (check bank policy). The general rule is that contents of the safe deposit box are part of the probate estate unless the contents (a) are registered to a trust or (b) ownership of the contents is in some form of joint ownership (c) or the co-lessor can prove ownership separate and apart from the deceased person.

The case law in this area indicates that the contents are part of the decedent’s estate unless the joint owner can prove they own the contents specifically.

In Bechtel’s Estate, In re, 348 So.2d 927 (Fla. App. 1977) the widow argued that the bearer bonds in the decedents name contained in a jointly leased safe deposit box were jointly owned by her and that she and the decedent were tenants by the entirety of the box. The widow relied on the fact that they were joint lessors on the box. The court
did not agree. The widow was ordered to turn over the bearer bonds contained in the safe deposit box to the administrator of the estate.

In Smith v. Silberman, 557 So.2d 78 (Fla. App. 1990) the widow claimed that the decedent’s bearer bonds contained in their joint safe deposit box were gifted to her by the decedent one evening over a romantic dinner. The case was remanded to the trial court where the widow’s testimony would be taken, and the court would determine if in fact the bonds were a gift. If the court determines that the bonds were not a gift, the widow will have to turn them over to the estate administrator. If the court determines that the bonds were a gift to the widow, she will be able to keep them. The fact that the bonds were contained in a joint safe deposit box was irrelevant as to the ownership of the bonds.

Include safe deposit boxes in your discussions with your estate planning attorney. Be sure you account for the contents of safe deposit boxes in your estate plan. Remember, a joint safe deposit box does not mean that the contents are jointly owned.

NOTE: I don’t recommend keeping Wills or Power of Attorney documents and other important estate planning and care planning documents in your safe deposit boxes. When the documents are in a safe deposit box, they are not easily accessible when most needed. A better idea is to keep these documents in a fireproof box in your home and make sure that your loved ones and/or a trusted friend knows where they are.

Diana Mangsen focuses her practice as an elder law attorney in Clearwater, Palm Harbor, Largo, Dunedin and the Tampa Bay area.

For more information, visit our website at
https://www.mangsenlaw.com/
or call (727) 888-6282.