Houston Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney Blog

Why You Need Alternate Executors, Trustees, and Guardians

Published on: April 10, 2025 | By David W. Miller

Naming an executor feels final—until that person moves overseas, develops health problems, or simply says no. Similar obstacles affect trustees and guardians. Without alternates, Texas courts decide who steps in. That may not match your vision. Engage a Dallas probate lawyer at McCulloch & Miller, PLLC to build a fiduciary lineup that adapts to real life.

Life Happens—Primary Fiduciaries May Decline

Executors handle time-sensitive tasks: filing the will, gathering assets, notifying creditors. If your chosen friend dies first or declines, delays follow. Trustees administer trusts for years; guardians raise children for decades. Counting on a single individual ignores life’s unpredictability—job transfers, marital changes, or strained relationships.

Texas Statutes Provide a Solution but Not Always the Best One

When no alternate exists, Section 304 of the Texas Estates Code lets beneficiaries petition for appointment. Courts prefer close relatives, but beneficiaries may disagree on who that should be. Litigation erupts, and estate funds pay the bill. Writing an alternate list prevents that fight by giving judges clear marching orders.

Planning Ahead for Incapacity: Why Powers of Attorney Are Just as Important as Your Will

Published on: April 10, 2025 | By David W. Miller

Most Texans picture estate planning as a will that activates after death. Life proves otherwise. A car crash, stroke, or sudden illness can leave anyone unable to sign checks or speak with doctors. If you have not appointed trusted agents, courts may step in—and court supervision rarely feels personal or efficient. Partnering with a Dallas probate lawyer at McCulloch & Miller, PLLC places the right people in charge before disaster strikes.

Incapacity Can Strike at Any Age

The Centers for Disease Control reports rising stroke rates among adults in their forties. Car accidents remain the leading cause of traumatic brain injury nationwide. Although seniors face higher dementia risk, no one owns a pass from sudden incapacity. Planning while healthy keeps you, not the court, in control of who will manage money and make care decisions.

Financial Power of Attorney Keeps Bills Paid

A durable financial power of attorney grants an agent authority to handle banking, investments, tax filings, and property management. You select the scope: broad authority for a spouse or limited powers for an adult child. Because the document survives incapacity, courts need not appoint a guardian of the estate. Less red tape means mortgage payments stay current, disability claims get filed on time, and your credit score remains intact.

The Hidden Costs of Not Having an Estate Plan in Texas

Published on: April 3, 2025 | By Thomas W. McCulloch

Dallas residents juggle careers, kids, and commutes; estate planning slides down the to-do list. Yet waiting has a price. When you pass away without clear instructions, your family pays—sometimes literally. Working with a Dallas probate lawyer at McCulloch & Miller, PLLC uncovers those hidden expenses early, saving your heirs from sticker shock later.

Probate Court Fees Add Up Quickly

Texas probate courts charge filing fees for every major step. Opening an intestate estate, requesting letters of administration, publishing mandatory notices, securing appraisals, and filing annual accountings each require a separate payment. A single fee rarely tops a few hundred dollars, but multiple petitions can double or triple costs. Because the administrator must post a bond when no will waives it, premiums rise with estate size. Those dollars leave the estate before heirs ever see a distribution, shrinking the legacy you meant to leave.

Family Conflicts Lead to Expensive Court Battles

Money can unite families—or tear them apart. Without written guidance, siblings debate who gets the lake cabin or Mom’s jewelry. One relative may accuse another of hiding assets; another may challenge the court-appointed administrator. Probate litigation attorneys bill hundreds of dollars an hour, mediators require retainers, and forensic accountants demand deposits. Even if peace returns, legal fees erode the estate. A clear estate plan puts your wishes on paper and keeps disagreements from spiraling into lawsuits.

Why Your Digital Assets Should Be Part of Your Estate Plan

Published on: April 3, 2025 | By David W. Miller

Your smartphone holds more than photos; it stores passwords, payment apps, and cryptocurrency keys. If you live in the Dallas area and die or become incapacitated, a court must sort out that virtual treasure. Working with a Dallas probate lawyer at McCulloch & Miller, PLLC ensures your digital life fits neatly into your estate plan while still honoring Houston roots.

Your Online Footprint Carries Real-World Value

Every paragraph of an email archive, each photo in cloud storage, and each dollar in a PayPal wallet can translate into financial or sentimental worth. Before diving deeper, remember that Texas treats intangible property just like a house or a car when it comes to probate. Including these bits and bytes now spares your loved ones expensive forensic recovery later.

How Long Does Probate Take in Texas? Understanding Timelines and Possible Delays

Published on: April 1, 2025 | By Thomas W. McCulloch

Until you go through the probate process, you have no reason to know how the probate process works. At McCulloch & Miller, we are experts in probate so that you don’t have to be. One question our clients often ask is how long probate takes from beginning to end. The short answer: it depends. The longer answer is below.

Factors Affecting Possible Delays in Probate

Probate in Texas can take anywhere from three months to one year to complete. The amount of time depends on several factors. One such factor is the size of the estate; while not always true, it is common that larger estates take longer to go through probate. Another factor is the complexity of the estate: are there many different kinds of assets, or is the estate mostly made up of one account or one kind of account?

A third factor that can influence the length of probate is the potential for any disputes among beneficiaries. If beneficiaries fight about issues such as whether the descendent had legal capacity when writing the will, whether the will is legally valid, or how to interpret the will, the process could take longer. One way to avoid this kind of dispute is early and often communication with your loved ones. If you prepare your beneficiaries for what will happen when you die, making sure to help them understand how you came to your specific choices, they are less likely to have any disputes during the process.

Muniment of Title vs. Full Probate: Which Is Right for Your Estate?

Published on: April 1, 2025 | By David W. Miller

Muniment of title is a process that can simplify estate distribution for beneficiaries, but it is not always the right tool for a decedent’s estate. How exactly does muniment of title work? And how can you know if it is right for your estate? Today’s blog post addresses these questions and serves as a guidepost regarding this important tool.

Muniment of Title: The Basics

Muniment of title refers to a process through which a decedent’s estate can go through a simplified probate. It is available to estates with minimal to no debts, with real estate as the main asset, and with few other complicating factors. When an estate elects to use muniment of title, the court does not need to appoint an estate executor. All the court needs to proceed is a valid, legal will, and the court can then approve the transfer of the decedent’s property from the estate to the beneficiaries.

How Do I Know Whether Muniment of Title is for Me?

If your estate plan includes a valid will and is primarily made up of real estate, muniment of title might be right for you. Importantly, the only debt in your estate should be liens on the real estate itself. You should also ensure that there will be no conflict over who inherits the real estate in your will before electing to use muniment of title.

How a Lady Bird Deed Can Help Texas Homeowners Avoid Probate

Published on: March 30, 2025 | By Thomas W. McCulloch

How a Lady Bird Deed Can Help Texas Homeowners Avoid Probate

One common goal in the estate planning process is crafting a plan that allows your beneficiaries to avoid probate. Probate can often be a long and drawn-out process, and many of our clients use various estate planning tools to avoid probate court altogether. One such tool, which we discuss on today’s blog, is the lady bird deed.

What Is the Lady Bird Deed?

The lady bird deed is a kind of deed that allows a homeowner to directly pass his property to a beneficiary upon his death. The name “lady bird deed” came from former president Lyndon Johnson’s wife, Lady Bird Johnson. President Johnson transferred his property directly to his wife upon his death, and the now common estate planning strategy ended up bearing her name.

With a lady bird deed, the homeowner formally names the beneficiary that will inherit the property. At the same time, though, as long as he is alive, the homeowner retains full control of the property. He can mortgage the property, sell it, lease it, or reside in it according to his own wishes. He is not required to consult the beneficiary for any major or minor decisions. Then, as soon as he dies, the property goes straight to the homeowner’s beneficiary without any probate court’s involvement.

How Medicaid Estate Recovery Affects Your Assets and How to Plan Ahead

Published on: March 24, 2025 | By Thomas W. McCulloch

Medicaid estate recovery is a scary process, and it can affect families across the country during already difficult times. How can you plan ahead and help guard against Medicaid estate recovery? This blog serves as a starting point, but remember that each person’s circumstances are different, and each person might benefit from a slightly different strategy when thinking through their own opportunities moving forward.

What is Medicaid Estate Recovery?

Medicaid estate recovery is the process through which the government seizes a decedent’s assets after he or she passes away. Typically, the government will initiate this process when the decedent benefited from Medicaid and when that person’s estate has assets that the government can use to recoup the money spent on his or her healthcare.

The government can legally seek reimbursement for any costs that the decedent used for a nursing home or long-term care facility, home services, prescriptions, and/or hospital services. The government is only allowed to seize the decedent’s assets that are part of their probate estate – so if you have an asset that is set up to bypass probate entirely, it will not be subject to the recovery process. Assets that are part of probate and would be subject to recovery can include (but are not limited to) a home, cash, and personal belongings.

Using Payable-on-Death (POD) and Transfer-on-Death (TOD) Designations to Simplify Estate Planning

Published on: March 21, 2025 | By Thomas W. McCulloch

Using Payable-on-Death (POD) and Transfer-on-Death (TOD) Designations to Simplify Estate Planning

At McCulloch & Miller, we believe that every client’s estate plan should make things as easy as possible both for our client and for their loved ones. One tool that we often use to simplify estate planning is the payable-on-death designation or the transfer-on-death designation. These mechanisms are known for helping decedents’ beneficiaries access their loved ones’ assets quickly, efficiently, and privately.

Payable-on-Death v. Transfer-on-Death

Both the POD and the TOD are ways of titling assets, and they indicate that the asset should be transferred to the named beneficiary immediately upon the asset owner’s death. What is the difference between the two types of accounts? POD designations typically apply to bank accounts, and TOD designations typically apply to investment accounts. They both share the commonality that when the owner dies, the accounts go directly to the owner’s named beneficiary, bypassing probate. While the named beneficiary may have to provide a copy of the decedent’s death certificate, there is very little work that must be done to access the account, especially relative to the time-intensive probate process.

Key Benefits of the POD and TOD

The major benefit of these designations is that they allow the beneficiary to bypass probate altogether. This in turn saves time and money, and it allows the transfer to happen without anything going into the court’s public record. It also simplifies the process for everyone involved. As soon as the account owner names the beneficiary, he or she can trust that the assets will get into that person’s hands without that person having to face any major hurdles down the line.

If you think one of these kinds of accounts might be right for you, speak with a Houston estate planning attorney that you can trust. Not all assets can be titled using a POD or TOD, so you will have to strategize with your attorney in the context of your entire estate plan. With the right legal team by your side, you can make sure your plan fits your needs and goals so that you can protect your loved ones long after you are gone.

Can a Will Be Too Old? When and Why You Should Update Your Estate Plan

Published on: March 17, 2025 | By David W. Miller

Can a Will Be Too Old? When and Why You Should Update Your Estate Plan

If you have taken the first step and created your will with the help of a Houston estate planning attorney, know that you are making important strides toward protecting your loved ones long after you are gone. Even after you write your will or estate plan, however, it is still important to update that will as time goes on. Today’s blog post answers the question of when your will is too old and why you should consider updating your estate plan.

Updating Your Estate Plan Every Three to Five Years

As a general rule, you should update your estate plan every three to five years. If your will is over five years old, it might be outdated. As the legal landscape changes, so should your estate plan, and this “three to five years” rule can help you make sure your estate plan remains legally and procedurally above board. It can also help you ensure your will always reflects your current priorities and desires.

Updating Your Estate Plan After Major Life Events

Additionally, you should update your will after every major life event. These life events could include a marriage, a divorce or separation, the birth of a child, the death of a beneficiary, or the purchase of a business. A major life event could also mean coming into a significant amount of money, property, or other assets. On the flip side, it could mean suddenly owing a significant debt. Other events to consider could be the imposition of alimony payments, child support payments, or any court-ordered fees.