Will my wife have access to the bank account? 28 Answers as of January 09, 2012

Under the rules of disclosure you are duty bound to disclose all accounts on which your name appears and in which you could have an interest.

She will not have access to it (such as to make transactions) however she will be able to request statements and information as part of the discovery process to ensure that no community funds were or are in the account.

Until your parents do something, your wife will continue whatever access she has now - if any. The divorce will not give her any access she doesn't already have. If, in fact, all funds in account belong only to your parents, it is not marital property to which your wife would have any claim in connection with the divorce property settlement. Proving ownership might be one of the issues in settlement of the case.

No. Only persons whose name is on the account have access. It does not sound like this account is a marital asset either since the account is strictly for your parents business.

If of you can prove that the account does not contain marital assets and that you are only on the account to protect your parents the account would not be subject to marital distribution.

If "by access" you mean will she be able to make withdrawals, probably not, since her name is not on the accounts. And she wouldn't informally be able to access information on the accounts. But if a divorce is filed and she engages in a discovery request asking for information regarding any accounts on which your name appears, then she will be able to have access to information such as copies of statements.

If the account belongs to your parents, then it is not subject to equitable distribution

Not likely, she would have to show you have been squirreling money away in that account to avoid giving her any of the marital income.

The financial information concerning your role in helping your parents on their accounts is legitimate information to disclose in your divorce. Unless your wife us on any of these accounts, she does not have a right to gain entry into the accounts.

No. If you can demonstrate that the funds are not a marital asset, they do not become part of the marital estate and, thus, are not divided.

Pursuant to Rule 401 of the Supplemental Rules of the Probate Court you are required to disclose and list all joint bank accounts and their values on your Financial Statement even if they are your parents' personal and business. You are also required to provide your Wife with 3 years worth of statements for these accounts. I would suggest that you file a Motion to exclude production of these records on the grounds that they are irrelevant because they are not part of the marital estate and you name is on them for convenience purposes only. In any case, your Wife will not have access to the funds that are in those accounts unles it is established that the accounts include marital funds.

Access to the funds in a bank account are controlled by the paperwork given to the bank when the account was set up or by the owner of the account subsequently.

Under Washfington state law, the court would examine the source of the monies in the account(s) to determine whether all of the account proceeds derive from your parents, and/or whether your have any real ownership interest in said proceeds. That being said, your wife and her attorney will have the right to receive and review all account records in the "discovery" process of your divorce to evaluate for themselves the foregoing information. Your parents should be forewarned that their private financial affairs can be laid open and examined by your wife and her attorney. This is one of many illustrations how adding 3rd parties to banking accounts has unintended negative consequences - and is often discouraged by attorneys.

Since you are about to go through a divorce, you need to handle the situation with your parents' accounts differently. Since they put you on the account, it is technically an asset of yours, which needs to be included in the marital pot for division through the divorce. You will need to show that you do not use the account for your personal use and have not put money into the account. Prior to filing for divorce, you need to get your names of these accounts and have your parents execute Powers of Attorney giving you the power to do their banking. This will limit the exposure of your parent's accounts during the divorce, but will not completely protect the assets, as your Wife's attorney may ask questions through discovery that will require you to disclose the accounts. Your parents need to be ready to testify as to ownership of the accounts and why you were on them. A Power of Attorney will allow you to do anything you need to do for your parents banking wise if they are unable, and a transfer on death beneficiary on the accounts will avoid probate (but not inheritance taxes if they apply). Most of your situation will depend on how your Wife acts throughout the divorce process. If it is an amicable divorce and she is aware that you are just on the accounts to help out your parents, she can agree to leave them alone. The other side of that is dragging every one into court to answer as to these accounts.

You will have to prove that you did not contribute anything to that account and that they are not your funds to exclude them from the community assets.

California law requires transparency so you must disclose the existence of those accounts. But she cannot access the accounts if they belong to your parents.

Possibly. You will have to prove that it is not your money and that you are only on the account to help your parents.

Yes. Because your name is on the accounts you will need to disclose their existence on your financial statement that you file with the court.