Q MY LATE mother, who died in 2004, was the owner of an HDB flat. She left behind two daughters and three sons.
After my father died many years ago, my mother lived in the HDB flat with her eldest son, his wife and three children.
All the rest of my siblings are married and we live on our own. My mother sold her HDB flat in 1998 and deposited the proceeds of the sale into a joint account which she held with my eldest brother.
By then, my eldest brother had bought his own HDB flat and my mother moved in with him and his family. When she died, she left no will.
My siblings and I are still awaiting our inheritance. We recently found out that my eldest brother and his wife have no intention to release our shares.
The joint account he had with my late mother now has a zero balance.
The bank book revealed that he had withdrawn $1,000 every day for many months. Now he insists all the money has been spent.
My siblings and I suspect the money has been moved into his own personal account.
Is there any way we can recover our rightful share of the inheritance? What legal action can we take against him?
A The asset owned by your mother as at the date of her death would be the monies in the joint account that she held with your eldest brother and not the HDB flat, as this had already been sold prior to her death.
As your mother had not left a will and your father had already died before your mother, your mother's assets will be divided equally between you and your four siblings. You would each be entitled to a 20 per cent share of all her assets that she held in her own name, be it the proceeds in bank accounts or property.
Unfortunately, this is not the situation when it comes to a joint bank account.
There is a presumption in law that the proceeds in a joint bank account are considered to be property which is owned jointly between the two account holders.
This means that when one joint account holder passes away, the surviving joint account holder is entitled to all the funds in the joint account. This is known as the 'principle of survivorship'.
Having said that, you should be aware it is possible to rebut this presumption if you and your siblings can provide evidence that it was not your mother's intention that the monies in the joint account held with your eldest brother be considered joint property.
If, for example, all the funds in the joint account were provided by your mother and your eldest brother did not make any deposits into the joint account, it would be possible to argue that the presumption should be rebutted, and your eldest brother should not be entitled to the balance proceeds in the joint account by virtue of the principle of survivorship.
It may also be possible to rebut the presumption if there is evidence to suggest that your mother wanted to add your eldest brother's name to the joint account only as a matter of convenience and she had always intended that the monies in the account were for her personal use to the exclusion of your eldest brother.
The cornerstone to successfully rebutting the presumption that the proceeds in the joint account are joint property and preventing the application of the principle of survivorship would be:
The intention of your mother when she opened the joint account with your eldest brother, and Her intention when she deposited the sale proceeds of the HDB flat into the joint account. Whether you are successful would largely be determined by the factual matrix of the case.
The court would consider factors such as the amounts contributed to the account by your mother and your eldest brother, as well as the reasons given for opening a joint as opposed to sole account.
Assuming negotiations with your eldest brother fail, in order for you to proceed, you and your affected siblings should decide who among you wants to be the administrator of your late mother's estate and start proceedings in court to be appointed to that position.
The administrator could then begin legal action against your eldest brother to recover the sums belonging to your mother in the joint account, in order to distribute the monies to all your siblings equally.
If costs are a concern, you may wish to consider approaching the Legal Aid Bureau.
Navin Joseph Lobo
Legal Associate
Harry Elias Partnership
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