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When a loved one passes away without a will, their family must navigate a complicated legal process governed by Texas intestacy laws. In these cases, the state determines how assets are distributed—often in ways that may not reflect your loved one’s wishes or serve your family’s best interests.

Understanding intestate succession helps you prepare for the challenges ahead and recognize the importance of proactive estate planning. If you’re dealing with an Austin estate where no will exists, Ford + Bergner, LLP can provide compassionate representation and guidance during this difficult process.

What Happens If Someone Dies Without A Will in Texas?

When someone passes away without a valid will, Texas law declares that person has died intestate, meaning the state’s default inheritance rules determine who receives their property. The court appoints an administrator to oversee the estate during the probate process.

This representative must follow strict legal procedures to locate assets, settle debts, and distribute property to the lawful heirs. Although intestacy laws are designed to promote fairness, they frequently lead to challenges for families:

• Unintended beneficiaries may receive assets.
• Loved ones that the deceased person supported may receive nothing.
• Family disputes over property distribution become more likely.
• The probate process is typically more protracted and more expensive.
• Minor children may not have appropriate guardians appointed.
• Specific family heirlooms or sentimental items may be passed on to unexpected recipients.

Intestate succession removes personal choice from the distribution of an estate and replaces it with rigid legal formulas. Families navigating this process often face emotional strain intensified by legal uncertainty and the potential for conflict among relatives.

Working with experienced legal counsel helps families understand their rights, fulfill their legal requirements, and resolve disputes that may arise during intestate proceedings.

Intestate Succession in Texas

The Texas Estates Code, Chapter 201, establishes a hierarchy of heirs based on family relationships, automatically distributing assets according to these statutory formulas, regardless of the deceased person’s actual wishes.

The distribution depends heavily on what types of property the deceased person owned and which family members survive them. Texas law establishes these rules, creating different outcomes based on marital status and whether the deceased person had children, parents, or siblings.

Surviving Spouses

A surviving spouse’s inheritance depends on whether the deceased person had children and whether the property qualifies as separate or community property. If the deceased person had children from a different relationship, the surviving spouse receives only one-third of the separate personal property, a life estate in one-third of the separate real property, and all community property.

When all children belong to both spouses, the surviving spouse inherits all community property and one-third of the separate personal property, plus a life estate in all separate real estate for their lifetime, with the remainder passing to the children.

Children

Children may inherit if their parent dies without a valid will (intestate). However, the specific share depends on whether a spouse survives and the type of property involved. All children receive equal shares of their parents’ estate, including biological children, adopted children, and children born outside marriage once paternity is established.

Children from previous relationships have the same inheritance rights as children from the current marriage, which sometimes surprises surviving spouses who assumed they would inherit everything.

Parents

When someone passes away without a spouse or children, their parents become the primary heirs under Texas intestacy law. The surviving parents inherit all separate personal property and all separate real property if both parents survive, splitting these assets equally between them.

If only one parent remains alive, that parent shares the estate with the deceased person’s siblings, receiving half of the separate personal property and half of the separate real estate.

Siblings

Siblings inherit only when the deceased person left no surviving spouse, children, or parents. Brothers and sisters receive equal shares of the entire estate when they stand as the closest living relatives. Half-siblings receive the same inheritance rights as full siblings under Texas law, and the estate gets divided equally among all surviving siblings regardless of whether they share one parent or both parents with the deceased individual.

Do Intestacy Laws Control All Assets?

Not every asset someone owns passes through intestate succession, even when that person left no will behind. Certain property transfers directly to named beneficiaries or joint owners outside the probate process entirely.

Texas Estates Code § 101.001 recognizes these non-probate transfers as valid methods of passing property, regardless of intestacy laws. Assets that bypass intestacy include:

• Life insurance policies with designated beneficiaries
• Retirement accounts with beneficiary designations
• Bank accounts with payable-on-death designations
• Investment accounts with transfer-on-death designations
• Real estate held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship
• Property held in living trusts

These beneficiary designations and ownership structures take precedence over intestacy laws, transferring directly to the named individuals. However, problems arise when beneficiary designations become outdated, contradict each other, or name deceased persons who were never updated.

Families sometimes discover that ex-spouses are still listed as beneficiaries on life insurance policies, or that adult children from previous marriages receive retirement accounts, while minor children from the current marriage inherit only through intestacy law.

How to Avoid Intestacy-Related Issues

Creating a valid will allows you to control asset distribution, name guardians for minor children, and choose someone you trust to administer your estate. Even simple wills provide far more flexibility and protection than intestacy laws offer, ensuring your wishes govern rather than state default rules.

Estate planning also includes beneficiary designations, trusts, powers of attorney, and medical directives that work together to protect you and your loved ones. Working with an estate law attorney ensures your plan complies with Texas law and accomplishes your specific goals.

In Need of Legal Help? Contact Ford + Bergner LLP today

Contact the experienced lawyers at Ford + Bergner LLP today & schedule your free consultation. We proudly serve Houston, Austin, Dallas & all throughout Texas. Visit our law offices at:

Ford + Bergner LLP – Houston Office

700 Louisiana St 41st Floor,
Houston, TX 77002, United States

Phone: (713) 260-3926
Fax: (713) 260 3903

Ford + Bergner LLP – Dallas Office

901 Main St 33rd floor,
Dallas, TX 75202, United States

Phone: (214) 389 0887
Fax: (214) 389 0888

Ford + Bergner LLP – Austin Office

221 W 6th St #900,
Austin, TX 78701, United States

Phone: (512) 610 1100
Fax: (512) 610 1101