In our latest video, we break down the process of estate administration with an heirship determination. This is the legal requirement in Texas to distribute or sell property when no will exists. We believe in setting realistic expectations, so we discuss the typical timelines you can expect—which usually range from 3 to 10 months—and how the efficiency of your specific county can play a role.
We also explain the critical difference between independent and dependent administration. While independent administration is the “best-case scenario” because it saves time and money, it requires the written consent of every single legal heir. Whether the heirs include a surviving spouse, biological children from any marriage, or adopted children, everyone must be on the same page.
Watch the video to learn more about how to navigate these requirements and why being forthcoming about family history is essential for a smooth court process. We are here to help guide your family through every step.
Video Transcript
0:00 Intro
0:30 If There’s Not A Will, There’s Still A Way!
1:01 What Is A ‘Letter of Administration?’
1:18 Not A Quick Process
1:35 Types of Administration
2:30 Understanding The Breakdown
0:00 Intro
One thing that we get a lot here at the firm is people who call and say that they’re trying to get to their mom or dad’s bank account after they have passed away to take care of creditors or to continue paying on the mortgage of a house and their loved one did not have a will and they need to know what they need to do to access that bank account or to sell a house. So, if your loved one had a home that they left behind and they did not have a will, what you’ll need to do is what we call an estate administration with an heirship.
0:30 If There’s Not A Will, There’s Still A Way!
So, if there’s not a will, there’s still a way. It’s just going to take a little extra work and quite a bit of extra time, unfortunately, especially depending on what county you’re going to land in and how large that county is. So, here in Tarrant County, where we have the bulk of our cases, the courts are pretty efficient and move the cases along faster. But, I always tell people when there’s not a will, it’s very important to set realistic expectations up front. And I tell people that the timeline can really range anywhere from like 3 to 10 months depending on several factors.
1:01 What Is A ‘Letter of Administration?’
So people will call and say the bank said I need a letter of administration. You know what is that and how quickly can I get it? Again 3 months would be an amazing scenario to get a letter of administration. But typically I tell people we’ll probably be looking more like five or 6 months to get that issued from the court.
1:18 Not A Quick Process
So the process to get those letters of administration is first thing that we have to file is an heirship determination. And that’s because here in Texas when you don’t have a will, the only way to be able to distribute or sell the property of your loved one is to have an administration coupled with an heirship.
1:35 Types of Administration
So there’s two types of administration that you can get here in Texas if your loved one did not have a will. The first one is an independent administration. The second type is a dependent administration. I always say if we can stay away from a dependent administration that is going to be the best case scenario because that independent administration requires less court supervision which means less court costs, less attorney’s fees, and less time for you to get things done.
However, the only way to get an independent administration—and I mean the only way—is if all of the heirs of the estate consent to that independent administration. So, if you have five children of the person that passed away and there’s just, you know, that one black sheep that doesn’t want to consent to your independent administration, unfortunately, one bad apple can spoil the bunch in this case. And the court will not grant that independent unsupervised administration unless you have written consent from everybody.
2:30 Understanding The Breakdown
So, our firm is certainly here to help you try to get those consents and explain to the family members what the process we’re going through is, but it’s just not always going to be attainable in every situation. So, if we get the independent administration, the court’s going to want to see that determination of heirship so that we can actually prove who the heirs of the estate are.
So, if your loved one was married, the spouse is going to be included. If there were children, the children are going to be included. And even adopted children are included. So, it’s always important to make sure you’re forthcoming with your attorney when they’re asking you these questions, sending you the questionnaire that we send out. It’s important to make sure you’re listing all of the children of the decedent, whether they’re from the current marriage, from a prior marriage, if they were born outside of a marriage, if they were adopted, even if they’ve passed away. So, it’s important to make sure you’re providing all the information so that we can then give that information to the court.