§ 128B. Notice to Heirs on Application to Probate Will After Four Years

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128B. Notice to Heirs on Application to Probate Will After Four Years

(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this section, an applicant for the probate of a will under Section 73(a) of this code must give notice by service of process to each of the testator's heirs whose address can be ascertained by the applicant with reasonable diligence. The notice must be given before the probate of the testator's will.

(b) Notice under Subsection (a) of this section is not required to be provided to an heir who has delivered to the court an affidavit signed by the heir stating that the heir does not object to the offer of the testator's will for probate.

(c) The notice required by this section and an affidavit described by Subsection (b) of this section must also contain a statement that:

(1) the testator's property will pass to the testator's heirs if the will is not admitted to probate; and

(2) the person offering the testator's will for probate may not be in default for failing to present the will for probate during the four-year period immediately following the testator's death.

(d) If the address of any of the testator's heirs cannot be ascertained by the applicant with reasonable diligence, the court shall appoint an attorney ad litem to protect the interests of the unknown heirs after an application for the probate of a will is made under Section 73(a) of this code.

(e) In the case of an application for the probate of a will of a testator who has had another will admitted to probate, this section applies to a beneficiary of the testator's probated will instead of the testator's heirs.