How Long Do I Have to Contest a Will?

Section 256.205 of the Texas Estates Code provides that “After a will has been admitted to probate, any interested person may commence a suit to contest the validity thereof not later than the second anniversary of the date the will was admitted to probate…”

There are two exceptions to the general rule:

1. If the contest is based on forgery or fraud, the Will can be contested for up to two years after the forgery or fraud is discovered.
2. If the person contesting the will was incapacitated by law, such as if he or she was a minor at the time the will was admitted to probate, then the incapacitated person has two years after the removal of that incapacity within which to file a contest.

If neither of these two exceptions exist, and more than two years have passed since the will was admitted to probate, then a suit to contest the validity of the will is barred.