Subject to the provisions contained in Section 62-3-916, no multiple-party account is effective against an estate of a deceased party to transfer to a survivor sums needed to pay debts, taxes, and expenses of administration, if other assets of the estate are insufficient. A surviving party or beneficiary who receives payment from a multiple-party account after the death of a deceased party is liable to account to his personal representative for amounts the decedent owned beneficially immediately before his death to the extent necessary to discharge the claims and charges mentioned above remaining unpaid after application of the decedent's estate. No proceeding to assert this liability may be commenced unless the personal representative has received a written demand by a creditor of the decedent, and no proceeding may be commenced later than one year following the death of the decedent. Sums recovered by the personal representative must be administered as part of the decedent's estate. This section does not affect the right of a financial institution to make payment on multiple-party accounts according to the terms of the account or make it liable to the estate of a deceased party This section does not affect the right of a financial institution to make payment on multiple-party accounts according to the terms of the account or make it liable to the estate of a deceased party unless, before payment, the institution has been served with an order of the probate court. HISTORY: 1986 Act No. 539, Section 1; 1987 Act No. 171, Section 71; 1976 Code Section 62-6-107; 2013 Act No. 100, Section 2, eff January 1, 2014.
South Carolina Legal Code