Tex. Est. Code § 254.005 · Chapter 254. CERTAIN PROVISIONS IN, AND CONTRACTS RELATING TO, WILLS
FORFEITURE CLAUSE.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) A provision in a will that would cause a forfeiture of or void a devise or provision in favor of a person for bringing any court action, including contesting a will, is enforceable unless in a court action determining whether the forfeiture clause should be enforced, the person who brought the action contrary to the forfeiture clause establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that:
(1) just cause existed for bringing the action; and
(2) the action was brought and maintained in good faith.
(b) This section is not intended to and does not repeal any law recognizing that forfeiture clauses generally will not be construed to prevent a beneficiary from seeking to compel a fiduciary to perform the fiduciary's duties, seeking redress against a fiduciary for a breach of the fiduciary's duties, or seeking a judicial construction of a will or trust.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1338 (S.B. 1198), Sec. 2.26, eff. January 1, 2014.
Amended by:
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 351 (H.B. 2380), Sec. 2.01, eff. January 1, 2014.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 949 (S.B. 995), Sec. 17, eff. September 1, 2015.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.254.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 c160726cc03422de48922ecdb9515f4691c026323a37b7b55210ec933c83360a
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.