Your Will reflects your wishes at the time you sign it. But your family, finances, relationships, and priorities can change over time.
A Will does not expire simply because it is old. However, an outdated Will may no longer accomplish what you want it to accomplish.
Sometimes reviewing your Will confirms that no changes are necessary. Other times, you may need to amend it, revoke it, or replace it entirely.
How you make those changes matters. Crossing out provisions, writing new instructions in the margins, or destroying your current Will because you want an older Will to control can create serious problems after your death.
This article explains when you should review your Texas Will, how you can update or revoke it, whether handwritten changes are effective, and what happens if you revoke a newer Will after an earlier Will has already been revoked.
How Often Should You Review Your Will?
There is no legal requirement that you update your Will according to a particular schedule. However, reviewing your estate plan every three to five years is a sensible practice even if nothing significant appears to have changed.
You should review it sooner after a major change in your family, finances, property, residence, or estate planning goals.
Events that should prompt you to review your Will include:
- Marriage or divorce;
- The birth or adoption of a child or grandchild;
- The marriage or divorce of a child or beneficiary;
- The death or incapacity of a beneficiary;
- The death, incapacity, or unavailability of your Executor, guardian, trustee, or another fiduciary;
- A substantial increase or decrease in your assets;
- The purchase or sale of significant property or a business;
- Receiving a substantial inheritance;
- A change in who you want to inherit your property;
- Moving to Texas from another state;
- Retirement;
- Changes in the law that may affect your estate plan; or
- Simply the passage of time.
If you have minor children, reviewing your guardian designation is particularly important. The person who seemed like the best choice several years ago may no longer be the person you would select today.
You should also review beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance policies, payable-on-death accounts, and other non-probate assets. Those designations can control who receives those assets regardless of what your Will says.
Does an Old Texas Will Need to Be Updated Just Because It Is Old?
No. A valid Texas Will does not become invalid merely because many years have passed since you signed it.
If your beneficiaries, fiduciaries, assets, family circumstances, and wishes remain substantially the same, your existing Will may still work exactly as intended.
The purpose of a periodic review is not to create new documents unnecessarily. It is to make sure the documents you already have still accomplish your goals.
When reviewing your Will, consider questions such as:
- Are the beneficiaries still the people or organizations I want to inherit?
- Are the percentages and specific gifts still appropriate?
- Is my Executor still willing and able to serve?
- Are my alternate Executors still appropriate?
- Would I still choose the same guardian for my minor children?
- Do any trusts created by my Will still reflect my wishes?
- Have I acquired or sold important property?
- Do my beneficiary designations still coordinate with my Will?
- Have I moved since signing the document?
If the answers are still satisfactory, you may not need to change anything.
How Can You Update a Will in Texas?
If your Will does need to change, you will generally either sign a codicil or execute a new Will.
Using a Codicil
A codicil is a testamentary document that amends or supplements an existing Will without replacing the entire document.
For example, a codicil might be used to change the person named as Executor while leaving the remainder of the estate plan unchanged.
A codicil is not simply a handwritten note attached to your Will. It must satisfy the applicable legal requirements for a testamentary document.
Codicils can be useful for limited changes, but they can also complicate an estate plan. A codicil may be misplaced, separated from the original Will, or create a conflict with another provision. Multiple codicils can make those problems worse.
Signing a New Will
In many cases, signing a new Will is the cleaner option.
A new Will allows all of your current instructions to appear in one document. It can expressly revoke prior Wills and codicils and eliminate the need for your Executor, beneficiaries, and the probate court to reconcile several different documents.
A new Will may be particularly appropriate when several provisions need to change or your circumstances have changed substantially.
Can You Make Handwritten Changes to a Typewritten Texas Will?
Making a small change by hand can seem harmless. You may want to cross out the name of an Executor, add a new beneficiary, or change who receives a particular item of property.
But handwritten changes to an already executed typewritten Will can create significant problems.
Handwritten changes made before a Will is properly executed may become part of the document when the Will is later signed using the required formalities.
Handwritten changes made after execution are different.
Writing new language into an already signed typewritten Will does not automatically make the new language effective. If the change is intended to operate as a codicil, it must independently satisfy the legal requirements applicable to a Will or codicil.
Texas also generally does not allow a person to partially revoke provisions of an attested typewritten Will merely by crossing them out or marking through them. As a result, striking through language may fail to accomplish the intended change while creating confusion about what the testator wanted.
You can read more about execution requirements in What Are the Requirements of a Valid Will in Texas?
What About a Holographic Will?
Texas recognizes holographic Wills, which are Wills written entirely in the testator’s handwriting and signed by the testator.
The rules governing holographic Wills differ from those governing attested typewritten Wills.
In some circumstances, handwritten testamentary language may have legal effect if it independently satisfies the requirements for a valid holographic Will. But adding a few handwritten words to an existing typewritten Will does not automatically convert the document into a holographic Will.
You can learn more in What Is a Holographic Will?
How Do You Revoke a Will in Texas?
Texas law recognizes two principal methods of revoking a written Will: executing a later qualifying writing or performing a qualifying physical act with the intent to revoke the Will.
Revoking a Will With a Later Writing
A Texas Will may be revoked through a subsequent Will, codicil, or written declaration of revocation that is executed using the required formalities.
A newly executed Will commonly contains language expressly revoking all prior Wills and codicils.
A later testamentary document may also supersede provisions in an earlier document when the two cannot be reconciled.
For most people who want to change their estate plan, executing a properly prepared replacement Will is preferable to simply revoking the existing Will.
If you revoke your Will without replacing it, you may leave yourself without a valid Will at all.
Revoking a Will by Physical Act
Texas law also permits a Will to be revoked by destroying or canceling it with the intent to revoke it.
The testator may perform the physical act personally or direct another person to do so in the testator’s presence.
Both the physical act and the intent to revoke matter are required to revoke the Will. Accidentally damaging or destroying a Will is not the same as intentionally revoking it. This is one reason you should not destroy your existing Will in anticipation of signing a new one later. The safer sequence is generally to execute the replacement first.
What Happens to Your Will After Divorce in Texas?
Divorce should prompt an immediate estate plan review.
Texas law can affect certain Will provisions involving a former spouse after divorce. Once the divorce is finalized, the former spouse as is treated as though they have predeceased the testator for purpose of the Will. However, relying entirely on statutory default rules is rarely the best approach.
A new Will can update provisions that name your ex-spouse as beneficiary, executor, trustee, or in another fiduciary role. Your estate plan may also include life insurance, retirement accounts, powers of attorney, beneficiary designations, and other documents that require separate attention.
Updating your estate plan after divorce allows you to decide exactly who should inherit and who should serve in important roles rather than relying on default rules to modify an older plan.
If You Revoke Your Current Texas Will, Does an Older Will Come Back?
No one should assume that destroying a newer Will automatically restores an earlier one.
Suppose you signed Will Number One. Several years later, you signed Will Number Two, which expressly revoked Will Number One. You then changed your mind and intentionally destroyed Will Number Two.
Will Number One does not automatically spring back into effect simply because Will Number Two was revoked. A previously revoked Texas Will generally must be properly republished or reexecuted using the required testamentary formalities before it can control again.
The practical consequences can be significant. If the newer Will is revoked and the earlier Will has not been legally restored, your estate could pass under Texas intestacy law rather than under either document.
What Happens if the Original Texas Will Cannot Be Found?
A missing original Will creates a different problem from an intentionally revoked Will.
Texas law permits a lost Will to be admitted to probate in appropriate circumstances, but additional proof is generally required.
The proponent may need to establish the cause of the Will’s nonproduction, that the Will was not revoked, and the contents of the missing Will. That can make probate more expensive, time-consuming, and uncertain.
If you discover during your lifetime that the original of your Will has been lost or destroyed, it may be much easier to execute a new Will rather than leave your family to prove a lost document after your death.
What Should You Do With an Old Will After Signing a New One?
After properly executing a replacement Will, ask your estate planning attorney how to handle superseded originals and copies.
You generally do not want your family finding several apparently valid Wills after your death and having to determine which one controls.
At the same time, timing matters. Do not destroy your existing Will merely because you plan to replace it soon. Execute the replacement properly first, and then address the older documents.
Your Executor or another trusted person should also know where the current original Will is stored and how to access it when necessary.
When Is a New Will Better Than a Codicil?
A codicil may be appropriate for a limited amendment, but a new Will is often preferable when several provisions need to change.
Replacing your Will may make sense if:
- You are changing multiple beneficiaries or gifts;
- You are changing your Executor, trustee, or guardian;
- Your family circumstances have changed significantly;
- Your estate has become larger or more complicated;
- You moved to Texas from another state;
- Your existing Will already has one or more codicils;
- The document contains outdated provisions; or
- A clean new document would make your intentions easier to understand.
The goal is not simply to make a legally valid change. The goal is to leave a clear estate plan that your family and Executor can understand and administer.
Can You Revoke a Texas Will Without Making a New One?
Yes, provided you use a method of revocation recognized by Texas law.
But revoking your only valid Will without understanding the consequences can produce an unintended result.
If you die without a valid Will, your probate estate will generally pass according to Texas intestacy law. Those statutes determine who inherits according to a legal formula rather than your individual wishes. Intestacy can also eliminate choices you made regarding an Executor, trusts for beneficiaries, and other provisions contained in your Will.
Unless dying without a Will is actually your objective, it is generally better to coordinate revocation of your old Will with execution of a properly prepared replacement.
Frequently Asked Questions About Changing a Texas Will
How often should I update my Texas Will?
There is no mandatory schedule. Reviewing your Will every three to five years is a reasonable practice, with an earlier review after a significant family, financial, legal, or residential change.
Does a Texas Will expire?
No. A valid Will does not expire simply because it is old.
Can I cross someone’s name out of my Texas Will?
You should not assume that crossing out someone’s name will legally accomplish what you intend. Texas generally does not recognize partial revocation of an attested typewritten Will simply through a strike-through.
Can I handwrite a new beneficiary into my Will?
Not safely. A handwritten addition to an already executed typewritten Will does not automatically become valid. Any testamentary amendment must comply with applicable Texas law.
Can I tear up my Will to revoke it?
Texas recognizes revocation through qualifying physical acts performed with the intent to revoke. But destroying your Will without replacing it may leave you intestate.
If I destroy my latest Will, does my earlier Will become valid again?
Generally, no. You should not rely on destroying your latest Will to revive one that was previously revoked.
Should I review my Will after moving to Texas?
Yes. Even if your prior Will remains valid, moving to another state is an excellent reason to review your estate plan under Texas law.
Review Your Texas Will Before a Problem Arises
Your Will is intended to speak for you when you are no longer available to explain what you meant.
Handwritten alterations, missing documents, conflicting codicils, or an improperly revoked Will can leave your family trying to reconstruct intentions that could have been made clear during your lifetime.
If your circumstances have changed since you signed your Will, reviewing it now can help ensure that your estate plan still reflects your family, your assets, the people you trust, and your current wishes.
Rania Combs is licensed to practice law in Texas and North Carolina and helps clients create and update estate plans tailored to their circumstances.
Schedule a consultation to discuss whether your Texas Will should remain in place, be amended, or be replaced.
