PITTSBURGH – The former wife of deceased NFL quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr. has denied the allegations contained in a lawsuit brought against her and Charles Schwab, charging that a will written by her late husband last year named her as his sole beneficiary in the event of his death.
Dwayne Haskins Sr., Tamara Haskins and Tamia Haskins of Clarksburg, Md. filed suit in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on Aug. 25 versus Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. and Charles Schwab Bank, National Association of Orlando, Fla. and Kalabrya Haskins of Pittsburgh.
“On April 9, 2022, Dwayne Haskins Jr. died as a result of a motor vehicle accident in Florida. Plaintiffs were beneficiaries on at least three separate accounts funded by the decedent and defendant Schwab. Said accounts were as follows: Two designated beneficiary individual accounts and a SEP IRA account. The beneficiary designations on each of the Schwab accounts are as follows: Tamia Haskins (60 percent); Tamara Haskins (30 percent) and Dwayne Haskins Sr. (10 percent)” the suit says.
“Upon the death of the decedent, the plaintiffs were immediately entitled to receive distributions of the Schwab accounts. Plaintiffs collectively are 100 percent beneficiaries of the Schwab accounts. In June 2022, defendant Kalabrya Haskins, through counsel, sent a letter to Schwab with a notice of dispute on the Schwab accounts. As a direct result of the notice of dispute, Schwab immediately froze the Schwab accounts and has refused to make distribution to the plaintiffs/sole beneficiaries.”
The suit adds that defendant Kalabrya Haskins did not provide any documents, evidence or detail in the notice of dispute to substantiate her dispute in any way.
“Schwab has advised plaintiffs that no documents regarding beneficiary changes were received by Schwab within at least one year of the death of the decedent. Schwab requires all changes in beneficiary designation be done on their authorized forms in writing. The decedent never made any changes to the beneficiary designations on the Schwab accounts after plaintiffs were named beneficiaries,” the suit states.
“Defendant Kalabrya Haskins’s notice of dispute is unreasonable, lacks merit and is frivolous. As a direct result of defendant Kalabrya Haskins’s notice of dispute and/or defendant Schwab’s refusal to distribute the Schwab accounts, plaintiffs are forced to wait on the distribution of the Schwab accounts and to incur unreasonable and unnecessary costs to the plaintiffs, including court costs and counsel fees, to prepare this suit.”
Haskins Jr. passed away after he was struck by a dump truck, during an attempt to cross Interstate 595 near Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on foot. Haskins Jr.’s rental vehicle had run out of gasoline and he was in the process of walking to get more fuel at a gas station prior to being struck by the truck.
As a result of the initial collision, Haskins was knocked back several feet and then struck a second time by an SUV that swerved in an attempt to avoid him. A post-mortem toxicology report showed he had a blood alcohol content level of .24 and had tested positive for ketamine and norketamine. His death was ruled an accident.
UPDATE
In an answer and new matter filed on Jan. 6, counsel for Kalabrya Haskins denied the allegations of the complaint in their entirety.
While admitting that her late husband’s sister Tamia was at one time the beneficiary of a trust containing a property on Bradley Street in Pittsburgh, she contends that Dwayne amended the language of the trust to change its beneficiary to herself.
Similarly, Kalabrya’s counsel maintains that Dwayne’s will and testament executed just last year named herself as sole beneficiary, and did not name any of the plaintiffs in that role.
“Prior to his death, Dwayne changed the beneficiary designation on all of the Schwab accounts identified in the complaint to reflect that Kalabrya was his sole beneficiary. Prior to his death, Dwayne changed the beneficiary designation of all of the Schwab accounts identified in the complaint to remove any designation of any of the plaintiffs as beneficiaries,” the answer’s new matter stated in part.
“Prior to his death, Dwayne changed the beneficiary designation of all of the Schwab accounts to name his decedent’s estate as beneficiary. Prior to his death, Dwayne changed the beneficiary designation of all of the Schwab accounts to name Kalabrya, as trustee of the modified or amended Bradley Street Trust, as beneficiary.”
Kalabrya’s counsel added that these changes were made subsequent to their marriage and that he did not intend any of the plaintiffs to be “beneficiaries of his testamentary estate, the Bradley Street Trust, the Schwab accounts or any contractual agreement with any other financial institution.”
Kalabrya’s attorneys request the Schwab accounts, held in interpleader status according to a Dec. 6 order of the Court, be awarded to her as beneficiary.
For two counts of unlawful account distribution, the plaintiffs are seeking an order declaring that they are sole beneficiaries on the identified Schwab Accounts in shares identified herein and compelling defendant Schwab to distribute the Schwab Accounts to the plaintiffs, plus monetary damages, including but not limited to, court costs and attorney’s fees, and/or grant any further relief this Honorable Court deems appropriate and just.
The plaintiffs are represented by Matthew A. Bole of Fiffik Law Group, in Pittsburgh.
The defendants are represented by Thomas J. Dempsey Jr. of Jones Gregg Creehan & Gerace, also in Pittsburgh, plus Joel Wertman and Doug Fogle of Winget Spadafora & Schwartzberg, in Philadelphia.
Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas case GD-22-010717
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com