UNIFORM SIMULTANEOUS DEATH LAW

K.S.A. ch. 58, art. 7

in effect

K.S.A. 58-708 Uniform simultaneous death act; definitions.

58-708. Uniform simultaneous death act; definitions. In this act: (1) "Co-owners with right of survivorship" includes joint tenants, tenants by the entireties, and other co-owners of property or accounts held under circumstances that entitles one or more to the whole of the property or account on the death of the other or others. (2) "Governing instrument" means a deed, will, trust, insurance or annuity policy, account with POD designation, pension, profit-sharing, retirement or similar benefit plan, instrument creating or exercising a power of appointment or a power of attorney, or a donative, appointive or nominative instrument of any other type. (3) "Payor" means a trustee, insurer, business entity, employer, government, governmental agency, subdivision or instrumentality or any other person authorized or obligated by law or a governing instrument to make payments. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 1; July 1. CASE ANNOTATIONS 1. Uniform simultaneous death act does not apply to determination of survivors under K.S.A. 40-3103. Polson v. Farmers Ins. Co., 288 Kan. 165, 200 P.3d 1266 (2009).

K.S.A. 58-709 Requirement of survival by 120 hours under probate code.

58-709. Requirement of survival by 120 hours under probate code. Except as provided in K.S.A. 58-713 , if the title to property, the devolution of property, the right to elect an interest in property, or the right to exempt property, homestead or family allowance depends upon an individual's survivorship of the death of another individual, an individual who is not established by clear and convincing evidence to have survived the other individual by 120 hours is deemed to have predeceased the other individual. This section does not apply if its application would result in a taking of intestate estate by the state. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 2; July 1. CASE ANNOTATIONS 1. Uniform simultaneous death act does not apply to determination of survivors under K.S.A. 40-3103. Polson v. Farmers Ins. Co., 288 Kan. 165, 200 P.3d 1266 (2009).

K.S.A. 58-710 Requirement of survival by 120 hours under donative dispositions in governing instruments.

58-710. Requirement of survival by 120 hours under donative dispositions in governing instruments. Except as provided in K.S.A. 58-713 , for purposes of a donative provision of a governing instrument, an individual who is not established by clear and convincing evidence to have survived an event, including the death of another individual, by 120 hours is deemed to have predeceased the event. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 3; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-711 Co-owners with right of survivorship; requirement of survival by 120 hours.

58-711. Co-owners with right of survivorship; requirement of survival by 120 hours. Except as provided in K.S.A. 58-713 , if (i) it is not established by clear and convincing evidence that one of two co-owners with right of survivorship survived the other co-owner by 120 hours, one-half of the property passes as if one had survived by 120 hours and one-half as if the other had survived by 120 hours and (ii) there are more than two co-owners and it is not established by clear and convincing evidence that at least one of them survived the others by 120 hours, the property passes in the proportion that one bears to the whole number of co-owners. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 4; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-712 Evidence of death or status.

58-712. Evidence of death or status. In addition to the rules of evidence in courts of general jurisdiction, the following rules relating to a determination of death and status apply: (1) Death occurs when an individual is determined to be dead under the uniform determination of death act, K.S.A. 77-204 et seq. and amendments thereto; (2) A certified or authenticated copy of a death certificate purporting to be issued by an official or agency of the place where the death purportedly occurred is prima facie evidence of the fact, place, date and time of death and the identity of the decedent. (3) A certified or authenticated copy of any record or report of a governmental agency, domestic or foreign, that an individual is missing, detained, dead, or alive is prima facie evidence of the status and of the dates, circumstances and places disclosed by the record or report. (4) In the absence of prima facie evidence of death under paragraph (2) or (3), the fact of death may be established by clear and convincing evidence, including circumstantial evidence. (5) An individual whose death is not established under the preceding paragraphs who is absent for a continuous period of five years, during which the individual has not been heard from, and whose absence is not satisfactorily explained after diligent search or inquiry, is presumed to be dead. Such individual's death is presumed to have occurred at the end of the period unless there is sufficient evidence for determining that death occurred earlier. (6) In the absence of evidence disputing the time of death stipulated on a document described in paragraph (2) or (3), a document described in paragraph (2) or (3) that stipulates a time of death 120 hours or more after the time of death of another individual, however the time of death of the other individual is determined, establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the individual survived the other individual by 120 hours. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 5; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-713 Exceptions to act.

58-713. Exceptions to act. This act does not apply if: (1) The governing instrument contains language dealing explicitly with simultaneous deaths or deaths in a common disaster and that language is operable under the facts of the case; (2) the governing instrument expressly indicates that an individual is not required to survive an event, including the death of another individual, by any specified period or expressly requires the individual to survive the event for a stated period; (3) the imposition of a 120-hour requirement of survival would cause a nonvested property interest or a power of appointment to be invalid under the rule against perpetuities; or (4) the application of this section to multiple governing instruments would result in an unintended failure or duplication of a disposition. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 6; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-714 Protection of payors, bona fide purchasers and other third parties; personal liability of recipient.

58-714. Protection of payors, bona fide purchasers and other third parties; personal liability of recipient. (a) Protection of Payors and Other Third Parties . (1) A payor or other third party is not liable for having made a payment or transferred an item of property or any other benefit to a beneficiary designated in a governing instrument who, under this act, is not entitled to the payment or item of property, or for having taken any other action in good faith reliance on the beneficiary's apparent entitlement under the terms of the governing instrument, before the payor or other third party received written notice of a claimed lack of entitlement under this act. A payor or other third party is liable for a payment made or other action taken after the payor or other third party received written notice of a claimed lack of entitlement under this act. (2) Written notice of a claimed lack of entitlement under paragraph (1) must be mailed to the payor's or other third party's main office or home by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, or served upon the payor or other third party in the same manner as a summons in a civil action. Upon receipt of written notice of a claimed lack of entitlement under this act, a payor or other third party may pay any amount owed or transfer or deposit any item of property held by it to or with the court having jurisdiction of the probate proceedings relating to the decedent's estate, or if no proceedings have been commenced, to or with the court having jurisdiction of probate proceedings relating to decedents' estates located in the county of the decedent's residence. The court shall hold the funds or item of property and, upon its determination under this act, shall order disbursement in accordance with the determination. Payments, transfers or deposits made to or with the court discharge the payor or other third party from all claims for the value of amounts paid to or items of property transferred to or deposited with the court. (b) Protection of Bona Fide Purchasers; Personal Liability of Recipient . (1) A person who purchases property for value and without notice, or who receives a payment or other item of property in partial or full satisfaction of a legally enforceable obligation, is neither obligated under this act to return the payment, item of property, or benefit nor liable under this act for the amount of the payment or the value of the item of property or benefit. But a person who, not for value, receives a payment, item of property or any other benefit to which the person is not entitled under this act is obligated to return the payment, item of property or benefit, or is personally liable for the amount of the payment or the value of the item of property or benefit, to the person who is entitled to it under this act. (2) If this act or any part of this act is preempted by federal law with respect to a payment, an item of property, or any other benefit covered by this act, a person who, not for value, receives the payment, item of property or any other benefit to which the person is not entitled under this act is obligated to return the payment, item of property or benefit or is personally liable for the amount of the payment or the value of the item of property or benefit, to the person who would have been entitled to it were this act or part of this act not preempted. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 7; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-715 Uniformity of application and construction of act.

58-715. Uniformity of application and construction of act. This act shall be applied and construed to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law with respect to the subject of this act among states enacting it. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 8; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-716 Citation of act.

58-716. Citation of act. This act may be cited as the uniform simultaneous death act. (1991). L. 1992, ch. 97, § 9; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-717 Effective date of act.

58-717. Effective date of act. On the effective date of this act: (1) An act done before the effective date in any proceeding and any accrued right is not impaired by this act. If a right is acquired, extinguished or barred upon the expiration of a prescribed period of time that has commenced to run by the provisions of any statute before the effective date, the provisions remain in force with respect to that right; and (2) any rule of construction or presumption provided in this act applies to instruments executed and multiple-party accounts opened before the effective date unless there is a clear indication of a contrary intent. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 10; July 1.

K.S.A. 58-718 Severability.

58-718. Severability. If any provision of this act or its application to any persons or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the act which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are severable. L. 1992, ch. 97, § 11; July 1.

Source: Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes (ksrevisor.gov)URL: https://www.ksrevisor.gov/statutes/ksa_ch58.htmlFetched: 10/20/2026