Texas Probate Q&A
from Paul Premack, Probate and Estate Planning

Texas Estates Code: any pay on death arrangement ends upon divorce, annulment, or voiding of the marriage.

Dear Mr. Premack: My sister and I have a question about a bank account that belonged to our father, who died about two months ago. All of...

One part of Probate is the process of "proving" that a Will is valid. Another part is distributing the assets to the intended heirs.

Does having a Community Property Survivorship Agreement (CPSA) really avoid probate? Does it have to go before a Judge when one of us dies?

The process is called “Appointment of an Administrator with the Will Annexed”. All provisions of the Will relating to distribution ...

If it is not admitted to probate by then, the law presumes that there was no Will at all which means that the resources pass by state law...

The most important factor is where you lived, not the location of your death. Dying away from your home city raises practical considerations

Probate of a Foreign Will involves Texas probate of a Will from another nation or another US state when the decedent had property in Texas.

When a person dies owning real property, several legal pre-planning documents impact establishing the identity of the new owners.

1) Wills are not “self-enacting”, 2) there is a legal time limit during which you must take legal action

Will POD account be upheld against challenge?

Can Executor do Probate without Lawyer?

Home Equity Loan liability after Divorce and Death

Can Wife’s Inheritance pass to Husband?

Aretha Franklin died in 2018 in Michigan, with an estate that Forbes reports as about $80 million. Three papers have been filed in court. Tw

Transfer of house title before or after death

Estate Planning Workaround idea needs work

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and other Hearst Newspapers on December 18, 2018. Dear Mr. Premack: A married...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and other Hearst Newspapers on November 19, 2018. Making a Will allows you, as...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and other Hearst Newspapers on October 12, 2018. Dear Mr. Premack: My mother...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and other Texas Hearst newspapers on August 3, 2018. Dear Mr. Premack: Our...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express-News on June 1, 2018. Dear Mr. Premack: I worked with our Certified Elder Law...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on March 23, 2018. Your mother fell victim to incomplete knowledge of the law...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on January 19, 2018. You are right to be careful. If you gave the Will to one...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on November 20, 2017. When a person dies, they might have a Will, might have...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on September 25, 2017. There are a few things that you can say in your Will,...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on September 23, 2016. Dear Mr. Premack: This week I received a letter from...

Read this column on MySA.com (the Express-News) by clicking here. This column first appeared in the Express-News on May 17, 2016. A Lady...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express-News on April 26, 2016. Texas law has two patterns for paying Executors. First, the...

This column first appeared in the Express-News on February 24, 2016. Dear Mr. Premack: I am an only child. My mother passed away recently...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on February 10, 2016. Dear Mr. Premack: A couple of years ago my friend put me...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on January 25, 2016. Proper planning can help preserve assets that would...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on January 13, 2016. Dear Mr. Premack:  This is a long story. I do not get...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on December 11, 2015. Dear Mr. Premack: You are asking questions that deal...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News on November 10, 2015. Each US state has its own distinct laws relating to...

This column first appeared in the SA Express-News and its MySA.com website on April 17, 2015. Dear Mr. Premack: Many years ago I agreed...

This column first appeared in the San Antonio Express News and its MySA.com website on April 7, 2015. Dear Mr. Premack: My mother died...

Dear Mr. Premack: My mother transferred her money into an account owned by Roger, the person named as Executor in her Will. She gave him...

This column first appeared on the San Antonio Express-News.com and the MYSA.com websites. Dear Mr. Premack: I was a caretaker for a lady....

Dear Mr. Premack: I read with interest your column regarding a widow’s step-up in basis. My husband recently passed away leaving me as...

Dear Mr. Premack: Although I am 92, I have kept up with and use a computer regularly. My son has helped me to establish online banking...

Original Publication: San Antonio Express-News, June 3, 2014 Dear Mr. Premack: I have read your past columns about Community Property...

Dear Mr. Premack: My parents live in Texas. I live in Texas and have a brother who lives in Texas and a sister who lives in California....

Dear Mr. Premack: My mother passed away in 2006 and named my older sister Executor. Now it’s 2014 and mother’s Will has not been...

Dear Mr. Premack: I previously had a will drawn up and I gave a copy to my beneficiary. Since then, I have decided to change my will by...

Dear Mr. Premack: I just discovered my uncle’s will. He died in 2006. I have been told that the probate period has passed. He willed his...

Custodial Accounts for Grandchildren Dear Mr. Premack: A savings account is established in a credit union for my three granddaughters. My...

Dear Mr. Premack: My father passed away, leaving me and my sister a house in Texas. My father also had two more houses in Oklahoma. We...

Usually the will is filed for probate by the person nominated as Executor. If that has not happened, the Probate Code allows “any...

When there is no Will and the estate is smaller than $75,000 - not including the value of the homestead.