Court Decision Bolters Tenancy By Entireties
A decision by the Fourth District Court of Appeals strengthens asset protection afforded by tenants by entireties ownership. The issue presented to the court was whether proceeds from the sale of an asset owned as tenants by the entireties retains its character as entireties property when deposited in an attorney's trust account. The creditor argued that once the sales proceeds were deposited in an attorney's trust account the property no longer had all six unities necessary to constitute a tenancy by the entireties. The appellate court held in the case of Passalino v. Protective Group Securities, Inc., 2004 WL 2534222 (Fla. App. 4 Dist) that transferring entireties property to a trustee for the benefit of the husband and wife does not terminate the unities of title or posession, where the parties clearly intended their property to be held as a tenancy by entireties by their jointly exercising beneficial ownership of the property and jointly controlling the property's ultimate disposition. Even where the husband or the wife, unilaterally, could order the disposition of the money held in trust the entireties characteristic is preserved.
