§ 44. Advancements
44. Advancements
(a) If a decedent dies intestate as to all or a portion of the decedent's estate, property the decedent gave during the decedent's lifetime to a person who, on the date of the decedent's death, is the decedent's heir, or property received by a decedent's heir under a nontestamentary transfer under Chapter XI of this code [FN1] is an advancement against the heir's intestate share only if:
(1) the decedent declared in a contemporaneous writing or the heir acknowledged in writing that the gift or nontestamentary transfer is an advancement; or
(2) the decedent's contemporaneous writing or the heir's written acknowledgment otherwise indicates that the gift or nontestamentary transfer is to be taken into account in computing the division and distribution of the decedent's intestate estate.
(b) For purposes of Subsection (a) of this section, property that is advanced is valued at the time the heir came into possession or enjoyment of the property or at the time of the decedent's death, whichever occurs first.
(c) If the recipient of the property fails to survive the decedent, the property is not taken into account in computing the division and distribution of the decedent's intestate estate, unless the decedent's contemporaneous writing provides otherwise.
[FN1] V.A.T.S. Probate Code, § 436 et seq.