Can you force someone to take an inheritance in Texas? |
A home is seen along a trail next to Chrysalis Lake in the Bridgeland community in Cypress in 2025. When a beneficiary refuses to accept an inheritance but won’t formally disclaim it, executors can find themselves stuck in legal limbo. Texas law offers several imperfect solutions, each carrying its own risks and costs.
Q: I'm the executor of my wife's estate. She died some time ago in Texas, and she left a significant part of her estate to her three children. One of the children was estranged from her and has insisted that he doesn't want anything at all from his mother's estate. He refused to sign a disclaimer which was drafted by my attorney. I'm preparing to send out checks to make a financial distribution to the children. What happens if he tears up the check or refuses to cash it? Also, the house is part of the estate, so at some point in the future it will be sold, and the proceeds will need to be distributed to the children. Can those funds be distributed to the other two children?
A: The money the son inherited belongs to him, and you can't simply distribute it to the other two children, or anyone else for that matter. There are a few options available to........