Tex. Est. Code § 455.004 · Chapter 455. PUBLIC PROBATE ADMINISTRATOR
POWERS AND DUTIES.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) On receipt of notice of a decedent for whose estate a personal representative has not been appointed and who has no known or suitable next of kin, the public probate administrator shall take prompt possession or control of the decedent's property located in the county that:
(1) is considered by the public probate administrator to be subject to loss, injury, waste, or misappropriation; or
(2) the court orders into the possession and control of the public probate administrator after notice to the public probate administrator.
(b) The public probate administrator is responsible for determining if the decedent has any heirs or a will and, if necessary, shall make burial arrangements with the appropriate county facility in charge of indigent burial if there are no known personal representatives.
(c) If the public probate administrator determines the decedent executed a will, the administrator shall file the will with the county clerk.
(d) The public probate administrator has all of the powers and duties of an administrator under this title.
(e) The public probate administrator may dispose of any unclaimed property by public auction or private sale, or donation to a charity, if appropriate.
(f) The statutory probate court judge or commissioners court may request accountings in addition to accountings otherwise required by this title.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 671 (H.B. 1755), Sec. 2, eff. January 1, 2014.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.455.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 33f505eaf6a63515eb7e89f4831069a91f13c5a4a5bc131e83d05978bff3e75b
- 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.