Skip to main content
Skip to explanation
A.R.S. § 14-6308

TOD Securities: Registering Entity Protection

Verified April 4, 202657th Legislature, 1st Regular Session

A financial institution may accept a transfer on death (TOD) registration on a security. When it does, the law protects it from claims by the estate, creditors, or heirs. The institution must act in good faith and is not forced to offer TOD registration.

Title 14, NONPROBATE TRANSFERS

azleg.gov

What This Means for Securities Accounts and Security Owners

Under the uniform transfer on death securities registration act, you can name a beneficiary directly on a security. This includes stocks, bonds, bank accounts, and brokerage accounts.

Ownership passes automatically when the security owner dies. This statute covers the other side: the duties and protections of the financial institution that handles the registration.

A registering entity is not required to offer or to accept a request for security registration in beneficiary form. If a registration in beneficiary form is offered by a registering entity, the owner requesting registration in beneficiary form assents to the protections given to the registering entity by this article.

A.R.S. § 14-6308(A)

No institution is forced to offer TOD registration. But once it does, both the institution and the security owner follow this framework.

The institution agrees to carry out the transfer when the owner dies. The owner agrees to the legal protections the institution receives in return.

How the Discharge of Claims Works

One of the most practical rules here is the liability shield. If the institution transfers the security in good faith, it is free from all claims.

A registering entity is discharged from all claims to a security by the estate, creditors, heirs or devisees of a deceased owner if it registers a transfer of the security in accordance with section 14-6307 and does so in good faith reliance on the registration.

A.R.S. § 14-6308(C)

That protection has one important limit. If the institution gets a written objection before it processes the transfer, the protection no longer applies.

Verbal notice or general awareness of a dispute is not enough. Only a written objection triggers the exception.

This statute does not settle disputes between beneficiaries and other claimants. It simply keeps the financial institution from being caught in the middle.

For accounts with multiple owners or payable on death (POD) labels, the same rule applies. The institution follows the registration and is protected when it does so properly.

A. A registering entity is not required to offer or to accept a request for security registration in beneficiary form. If a registration in beneficiary form is offered by a registering entity, the owner requesting registration in beneficiary form assents to the protections given to the registering entity by this article. B. By accepting a request for registration of a security in beneficiary form, the registering entity agrees that it will implement the registration on the death of the deceased owner as provided in this article. C. A registering entity is discharged from all claims to a security by the estate, creditors, heirs or devisees of a deceased owner if it registers a transfer of the security in accordance with section 14-6307 and does so in good faith reliance on the registration, on the requirements of this article and on information provided to it by affidavit of the personal representative of the deceased owner, the surviving beneficiary or the surviving beneficiary's representatives or by other information available to the registering entity. D. The protections of this section do not extend to a reregistration or payment made after a registering entity receives written notice that a claimant to any interest in the security objects to implementation of a registration in beneficiary form. No other notice or other information available to the registering entity affects its right to protection under this section. E. This section does not affect the rights of beneficiaries in disputes between themselves and other claimants to ownership of the security transferred or its value or proceeds.

This page provides general legal information about Arizona statutes and is not legal advice. For guidance on how this law applies to your situation, speak with a qualified attorney.

Get Started Today

Need Help With Your Estate Plan?

Whether you are just getting started or reviewing an existing plan, RJP Estate Planning works hand in hand with experienced estate planning counsel to help you understand your options.

(480) 346-3570