Roth v. Filipek

On this appeal we have concluded that the proceeds of the bank account are the property of Mr. Roth, and that the cash found in the safe-deposit box is an asset of Mrs. Roth’s estate.

The Bank Account.

The contract theory of joint bank accounts, adopted by this court in Estate of Staver (1935), 218 Wis. 114, 260 N. W. 655, relies on the contract of deposit rather than delivery of evidence of the chose in action for the perfection of the joint interests of donee and donor depositors. “The instrument in legal contemplation vests ownership in a chose in action according to its terms. The joint…