Court Safekeeping of Original Wills in Texas

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Who may deposit

Under § 252.001(a), the clerk may ask for proof of the testator's identity and residence before taking the will. Section 252.001(a-1) separately permits an attorney, business, or other custodian that cannot keep the will to use the testator's last-known county, but only after a diligent search fails to locate or contact the testator. That custodian must provide the testator's last-known address and available addresses for named executors.

Envelope and filing record

§ 252.002 requires a sealed wrapper. For a testator-directed deposit, it must identify the testator with name, address, and signature, plus the names and current addresses of those to be notified after death. A lost-contact custodian instead supplies the testator's last-known address and available executor addresses on the wrapper. The clerk gives the will and certificate matching numbers under § 252.003 and keeps an index under § 252.004.

Retrieval before death

§ 252.051 limits lifetime delivery to the testator or someone authorized by the testator's sworn written order. § 252.052 normally requires surrender of the deposit certificate on delivery; if it is lost, stolen, or destroyed, the clerk may accept and file the testator's affidavit instead.

Notice and release after death

Under § 252.101, either a death affidavit or other proof sufficient to convince the clerk triggers notice to the people endorsed on the wrapper. A person notified may request the will, and the clerk must take a delivery receipt (§ 252.102). If notice is returned undelivered or no recipient is on the wrapper, § 252.103 directs the clerk to open and inspect the will. The clerk then notifies and, on request, delivers to a named executor (§ 252.104). § 252.105(a)–(b) supplies a devisee notice and delivery route if there is no executor, the executor has died, notice fails, or the executor does not take the will within the stated 31-day period.

What trips people up

The $5 payment and certificate under § 252.001(b)–(c) are for custody. § 252.151 says deposit is only a repository and gives the will no different probate treatment. A sealed will can still reach an executor or devisee after death through the fallback steps above.

Common questions

Does depositing a will tell beneficiaries about it? No. § 252.153 expressly says deposit is not notice of the will's existence or contents. The clerk's death-stage notification is a separate duty.

Can a later, undeposited will control? § 252.152 says a later undeposited will can be admitted on proof that it is the testator's last will despite an earlier deposited will.

Statutes and sources

• Tex. Est. Code §§ 252.001–.004, .051–.052, .101–.105 and .151–.153. Verbatim official text, source URL, and access dates appear in the source fields above.