HB1362: Revising the Beneficiary Deed

After several months of analyzing the current law on Beneficiary Deeds (which actually just went into effect in 2005) with a group of Arkansas lawyers specializing in this area, I filed HB1362 this afternoon.

In Spring 2006, the Arkansas Lawyer published a piece by Chris Barrier titled "The Uncertain Gift: Arkansas' [sic] New Beneficiary Deed" (sorry, couldn't resist). This feature outlined the problem with the new law in its current form and sets out in detail problems that arise from the use of these instruments. I contacted Mr. Barrier after reading his article, and he had already assembled a group of attorneys across the state to address this problem. This bill is the product of this group's work.