This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and other Texas Hearst Newspapers on September 7, 2018. When a person dies, there are four ways that someone else becomes the owner of their assets. First and most traditional is for the assets to pass to the devisees named in the Will. Typically, the Will needs to be probated, a courtroom process which can be very streamlined under Texas law. Second and all too often seen is for the assets to pass under the laws of i

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and other Texas Hearst Newspapers on August 24, 2018. You have already hired legal counsel (your probate attorney). You should ask these questions of your attorney and rely on the advice your attorney shares with you. I can use your situation as an example for other readers, but since your short letter cannot tell me all the details you have shared with your probate attorney you should rely on that attorney for a spec