Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Texas

The executor's job is to file the will for probate. Once appointed, the executor has the job of collecting the estate assets, paying estate debts and distribute funds according to the will. As a beneficiary, you are to receive a copy of the will, assuming the person who wrote the will is dead, and assuming that someone has actually filed the will for probate.

Dave

Mr. Leon has given you a great answer. I'd describe it more as a duty than a right. Under some fairly recent legislation, executors in Texas must provide each beneficiary with a copy of the Will and specific notice that the Will has been admitted to probate. Most of the time, the beneficiaries will receive a very brief letter from the executor's attorney.

Of course, if you know that the Will has been offered for probate, you can always review the county clerk's file for yourself. Admitted or not, if it was filed, it's there.

Even if the Will has not been filed probate, you might be able to get a peek at it. The person in custody of a Will, after the decedent's death, is obligated to deposit the Will (not necessarily file it for probate) with the County Clerk. If you're actually a beneficiary, you have enough of a legal interest to compel this action, and situations like that happen more frequently than you might think.