Must IRA Owner Have 'Substantially Complied' With Beneficiary Change Policy When Strict Compliance Waived?

Where Owner Informed Custodian of Desired Change, But Died Without Returning Forms

Lori Leblanc et al. v. Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC, et al., Case nos. 2011-2073 and 2011-2160

Second District Court of Appeals (Montgomery County)

ISSUE: When the owner of an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) designates new beneficiaries on the custodian's change-of-beneficiary form and signs the form, but fails to return it to the custodian before dying, if the custodian is sued over entitlement to the account proceeds and waives strict compliance with its beneficiary change procedures, must the putative new beneficiaries still show that the decedent "substantially complied" with the custodian's beneficiary change policy?