Texas is a community property state with no elective share, so a will controls less than most people assume. Dallas estate planning attorney Caleb Patterson explains what you can and cannot direct, and what a surviving spouse keeps regardless.

A pour-over will is the document that catches everything you forgot to put in your trust. Dallas estate planning attorney Caleb Patterson explains how it works and why every trust needs one.

Texas gives property owners two ways to pass real estate outside probate, and they are not interchangeable. Dallas estate planning attorney Caleb Patterson compares the Lady Bird Deed and the Transfer on Death Deed side by side.

Texas intestacy law doesn't treat every heir the same. Dallas estate planning attorney Caleb Patterson breaks down the special rules for adopted children, stepchildren, and children born outside of marriage, plus the 120-hour survival rule, disclaimers, and advancements that apply when there's no will.