Two Account Forms, One Will, and a Collin County Estate

Two copies of an account form became important in a Collin County family's dispute. One copy, found among a woman's papers after her death, bore her signature and her husband's but did not show account numbers or ownership designations. The brokerage firm's copy included those details and marked the accounts for survivorship.

The woman's will left her estate to her children. The account paperwork pointed toward her surviving husband. Which document controlled the accounts?

In a 2025 decision, the Dallas Court of Appeals examined the account agreement, the surrounding evidence and a jury's findings. The result offers an estate-planning lesson: a will and an account agreement may govern different property.

The agreement behind the account

According to the court's opinion in Estate of Manley, Robert Manley opened investment accounts in his own name in 2001. In 2003, his wife Janice was added to the accounts, and both signed a client relationship agreement. Janice died in 2019. Her 1989 will left her estate to her children.

During probate, her children challenged whether the accounts had a valid right of survivorship. They relied in part on the signed copy found among Janice's belongings, which lacked account numbers and ownership designations. Robert relied on the brokerage firm's copy, which identified the accounts and marked them “JTWROS”—an abbreviation the agreement packet defined as joint tenants with right of survivorship.

The difference mattered because a valid survivorship arrangement could cause Janice's community-property interest in those accounts to pass to Robert at her death, instead of being distributed under her will.

What the jury and court decided

The jury found that Janice and Robert agreed the accounts would belong to the surviving spouse and signed the agreement to establish or confirm that arrangement. It also found that the account numbers and survivorship marks were not on the form when they signed, but that the spouses intended the brokerage firm to add them to carry out their agreement.

The appellate court concluded that sufficient evidence supported the relevant findings and affirmed the judgment awarding the accounts to Robert. Among the evidence were the signed agreement, its related packet and disclosures, and account statements identifying the accounts as having survivorship rights.

This was a fact-specific decision about a particular agreement and verdict. It does not mean every incomplete form or later-added mark creates a valid survivorship agreement. Nor should anyone assume an account is a survivorship account simply because two names appear on it.

What Texas law says today

Texas Estates Code Section 112.052 says a community-property survivorship agreement must be in writing and signed by both spouses. It lists language that is sufficient when the other requirements are met, while recognizing that an otherwise compliant agreement can be effective without those exact phrases. The statute also says survivorship cannot be inferred merely because an account is called joint or joint tenancy.

Section 113.151 separately addresses rights of survivorship in joint accounts, including a written agreement signed by the party who dies. The Manley court considered former Probate Code provisions applicable to the 2003 agreement; today's Estates Code provisions provide current planning context. The account terms, ownership and applicable law all matter.

Bring the account into the estate-plan conversation

A practical review starts with the paperwork that actually governs each asset:

• Make a list. Identify bank and brokerage accounts, their owners, and any survivorship or beneficiary designations.
• Request the complete agreement. Ask the institution for the signed form, incorporated terms and current ownership designation—not just a statement with account names.
• Compare the documents. Look at the will and any trust alongside the account paperwork. Ask whether the combined result fits your wishes for a spouse, children or others.
• Avoid signing incomplete documents. Review selections and account details before signing, ask what abbreviations mean, and retain a complete copy and confirmation.
• Get advice before making changes. Ownership rights, community property, the institution's procedures and other legal or financial consequences can affect the right approach.

A well-coordinated plan makes room for both the document in the estate-planning folder and the agreement on file at the financial institution. Learn about WG Law's estate planning services and probate services. To discuss your situation, call 214-250-4407 or contact our North Texas team.

This article provides general legal information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Texas law and individual circumstances can affect the result.