In Texas, you have two years from the date a probate court admits a will to file a contest challenging its validity. That deadline comes from Section 256.204 of the Texas Estates Code, and once it passes, the will stands and the estate distribution becomes final.1State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 256.204 – Period for Contest A few narrow exceptions can extend that window, and a separate four-year rule governs whether a will can be probated in the first place, so the timing picture is a little more layered than a single number.
When the Two-Year Clock Starts
The two years do not run from the date of death. They do not run from the day the family finds the will. They run from the specific date the probate court issues its order admitting the will.1State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 256.204 – Period for Contest If someone dies in January but the will isn’t probated until October, your deadline runs until October two years later.
That distinction matters because probate proceedings sometimes take months before a court formally validates the will. The deadline applies to all the common grounds for a contest, including undue influence, lack of mental capacity, improper execution, forgery, and fraud.
Exceptions That Extend the Deadline
Forgery and Fraud
If your contest is based on forgery or fraud, the two years run from the date the forgery or fraud was actually discovered, not from the date the will was admitted.1State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 256.204 – Period for Contest A contest can proceed years after probate if the fraud only came to light later.
Texas courts have historically been strict about when discovery is deemed to occur. If evidence of fraud was sitting in plain view and you simply didn’t look into it, a court may find you should have discovered the problem earlier and treat the claim as time-barred. The protection is aimed at genuinely hidden fraud.
Incapacitated Contestants
If a potential contestant has been legally declared incapacitated, the two-year period doesn’t begin until the incapacity is removed.1State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 256.204 – Period for Contest Once legal capacity is restored, two years run from that date.
One clarification worth knowing: the statute names “incapacitated person,” not minors. Whether a minor who is not otherwise incapacitated qualifies for tolling under Section 256.204 is a question for a probate attorney, since Texas has general tolling rules for minors in other legal contexts but the contest statute itself only references incapacity.
The Earlier Four-Year Deadline to Probate the Will
Before anyone can contest a will, the will has to be in probate. Texas imposes a separate, earlier deadline that families often overlook: a will generally cannot be admitted to probate more than four years after the person’s death.2State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 256.003 – Period for Admitting Will to Probate; Protection for Certain Purchasers If that window passes without anyone filing, the estate is typically handled under Texas intestacy rules as though no will existed.
There is a narrow exception. If the person who holds the will can prove they were not at fault for the delay, a court may still admit the will after four years.2State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 256.003 – Period for Admitting Will to Probate; Protection for Certain Purchasers Even then, the court won’t issue letters testamentary unless the application was filed within those four years. Anyone who bought estate property in good faith from the heirs more than four years after the death is also protected from later claims by beneficiaries under a newly probated will.
The practical point: if you’re waiting to see whether you need to contest a will, the clock is already ticking in two different ways. A will that never gets filed can’t be contested, but the estate will be distributed without it.
You Can File Opposition Before Probate
You don’t have to wait for the two-year clock to start running. Texas allows any interested person to file a written opposition at any time before the court rules on the probate application.3State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 55.001 – Opposition in Probate Proceeding When a will is first filed, a public notice is posted announcing the hearing where the will may be admitted.4Texas State Law Library. Will Contests Filing opposition during that window turns the probate hearing into a contested proceeding.
Filing early carries a real advantage. At that stage, the person offering the will still bears the burden of proving it valid. Once a will has been admitted, the presumption flips: the will is treated as valid, and the contestant must prove otherwise. Catching the proceeding before admission forces the proponent to establish proper execution, mental capacity, and the absence of undue influence up front.
Who Has Standing to File
Deadlines only matter if you are entitled to file. Texas limits contests to “interested persons,” which the Estates Code defines as heirs, beneficiaries named in the will, the surviving spouse, creditors of the estate, and anyone else with a property right or claim against the estate. The definition also includes anyone interested in the welfare of an incapacitated person, including a minor.4Texas State Law Library. Will Contests A friend who disagrees with how the deceased divided assets has no standing.
The most common contestants are children left out or given less than expected, a surviving spouse who believes community property was improperly given away, and beneficiaries under a prior will that the new one replaced.
Check for a No-Contest Clause Before You File
Some Texas wills include a no-contest clause, sometimes called an in terrorem clause. These provisions say that any beneficiary who challenges the will forfeits their inheritance. If you are named for a $200,000 bequest and you lose the contest, you walk away with nothing.
Texas courts enforce no-contest clauses but interpret them narrowly to avoid punishing beneficiaries with legitimate concerns. Many jurisdictions recognize a “probable cause” exception, which protects a beneficiary who had a reasonable basis for the challenge. If you already stand to inherit something, weigh the evidence carefully before using your two years to file.