Texas RUFADAA Law
Verified against the official Tex. Est. Code ch. 2001 text:
How Estates Code Chapter 2001 governs what Texas executors, administrators, agents, trustees, and guardians can obtain from an online account provider.
Quick answer
Texas governs fiduciary access to digital assets through Estates Code Chapter 2001, added by SB 1193 (85th Legislature) and effective September 1, 2017. A personal representative proves authority with letters testamentary or of administration, a small-estate affidavit under §205.001, or another court order, and obtains message content only with the user's consent. Medical powers of attorney and guardians of the person are excluded. Under §2001.051, an online-tool direction overrides a contrary will, trust, or power of attorney, and custodians must comply within 60 days (§2001.231).
Texas digital asset law at a glance
- Statute
- Texas Estates Code Chapter 2001 (Title 4)
- Enacted
- SB 1193, Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., ch. 400; effective September 1, 2017
- Applies to
- Custodians of users who reside or resided in Texas at death (§2001.003)
- Fiduciaries covered
- Personal representatives, guardians of the estate, agents for property matters, trustees (§2001.002)
- Online-tool priority
- §2001.051
- Custodian deadline
- 60 days after receiving the required information (§2001.231)
- Small-estate route
- Small-estate affidavit under §205.001 accepted (§§2001.101–2001.102)
- Excluded
- Medical powers of attorney and guardians of the person only (§2001.002)
What makes Texas’s law different
Medical powers of attorney do not count
Texas defines a power of attorney for Chapter 2001 as a record granting authority over property matters, and excludes agents under a medical power of attorney. A health-care agent cannot use Chapter 2001 to reach the principal's accounts. A statutory durable power of attorney for property is the relevant document.
Guardians of the person are excluded
Chapter 2001 borrows the Estates Code definition of guardian (§1002.012) but carves out a guardian of the person only. Digital-asset authority belongs to a guardian with authority over the ward's estate, and under §2001.171 even that guardian needs a certified court order granting authority over digital assets.
Texas probate paperwork is named directly
Sections 2001.101 and 2001.102 accept certified letters testamentary or of administration, a small-estate affidavit under §205.001, or another court order. Trustees may use a certification of trust under Property Code §114.086 rather than the full trust instrument (§2001.152).
Termination has its own section
Texas places account termination in a stand-alone provision, §2001.202. A fiduciary may request it in writing with a certified death certificate and the letters, small-estate affidavit, power of attorney, or trust instrument that gives authority over the account.
What a Texas personal representative must give the custodian
After a death, Tex. Est. Code ch. 2001 separates two requests: the content of the user’s emails and messages, and everything else, including a catalogue of who the user corresponded with and when. Each has its own document list.
To obtain message content (§2001.101)
- A written request for disclosure, in physical or electronic form
- A certified copy of the death certificate
- A certified copy of letters testamentary or of administration, a small-estate affidavit under §205.001, or another court order
- Unless the user gave direction through an online tool, a copy of the will, trust, power of attorney, or other record showing consent to disclosure of content
- If the custodian asks: an account identifier, evidence linking the account to the user, or a court finding on the account, federal-law compliance, consent, and necessity for administration
To obtain the catalogue and other digital assets (§2001.102)
- A written request, a certified death certificate, and the same letters, affidavit, or order
- If the custodian asks: an account identifier, evidence linking the account to the user, an affidavit that disclosure is reasonably necessary for administration of the estate, or a court finding
- No consent is needed for the catalogue unless the user prohibited disclosure or a court directs otherwise
Agents, trustees, and guardians in Texas
Agent under a power of attorney (§§2001.131–2001.132)
Message content requires a power of attorney that expressly grants authority over the content of electronic communications. The catalogue and other assets require specific authority over digital assets or general authority to act on behalf of the principal. A medical power of attorney does not qualify for either.
Trustee (§§2001.151–2001.153)
A trustee that is the original user gets full disclosure. Otherwise the trustee provides the trust instrument or a Property Code §114.086 certification including consent to disclosure, plus a sworn certification that the trust exists and the trustee is acting.
Guardian (§2001.171)
A guardian of the estate receives the catalogue and non-content assets on a certified court order giving authority over the ward's digital assets, and may seek suspension or termination of the ward's account for good cause.
Can an online account setting override a Texas will?
Yes, within limits. Tex. Est. Code §2001.051 lets a user direct a custodian, through the custodian’s own online tool, to disclose or withhold some or all digital assets. If the tool lets the user change or delete that direction at any time, it overrides a contrary instruction in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record. Where the user made no such direction, the estate documents control, and either kind of direction overrides a conflicting terms-of-service clause.
How Tex. Est. Code ch. 2001 is organized
| Section | Subject |
|---|---|
| §2001.001 | Short title |
| §2001.002 | Definitions |
| §2001.003 | Applicability |
| §2001.004 | Uniformity of application and construction |
| §2001.005 | Relation to E-SIGN Act |
| §2001.051 | User direction for disclosure of digital assets |
| §2001.052 | Terms-of-service agreement |
| §2001.053 | Procedure for disclosing digital assets |
| §2001.101 | Content of electronic communications of deceased user |
| §2001.102 | Other digital assets of deceased user |
| §2001.131 | Content of electronic communications of principal |
| §2001.132 | Other digital assets of principal |
| §2001.151 | Digital assets held in trust when trustee is original user |
| §2001.152 | Content held in trust when trustee is not original user |
| §2001.153 | Other digital assets held in trust when trustee is not original user |
| §2001.171 | Disclosure of digital assets to guardian |
| §2001.201 | Fiduciary duty and authority |
| §2001.202 | Authority to terminate account |
| §2001.231 | Custodian compliance |
| §2001.232 | Immunity from liability |
Texas RUFADAA questions
Texas Estates Code Chapter 2001 was added by SB 1193 of the 85th Legislature and took effect September 1, 2017.
Yes. Sections 2001.101 and 2001.102 accept a small-estate affidavit under Estates Code §205.001 in place of letters testamentary or of administration.
No. Chapter 2001 excludes agents under a medical power of attorney. A durable power of attorney for property matters is the relevant document.
Only with the user's consent, given through an online tool or in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record, or if a court directs disclosure (§2001.101). The catalogue of correspondents and dates is available without consent (§2001.102).
Sixty days after receiving the required information. A court order compelling compliance must find it does not violate 18 U.S.C. §2702 (§2001.231).
Yes, under §2001.051, if the tool lets the user modify or delete the direction at all times.
Concepts that apply in every state
Some ideas work the same way under every RUFADAA-style statute: what counts as a digital asset, why the content of private messages is treated differently from a catalogue, what a custodian may hand over, and what these laws do not do (they never guarantee passwords). They are explained once in the RUFADAA overview.
Primary source
Texas Estates Code Chapter 2001, the Texas Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act
Online-tool provision: Tex. Est. Code §2001.051.
Where Vesperly fits
Tex. Est. Code ch. 2001 decides who may ask a custodian for what. Vesperly handles the practical side: keeping your records encrypted, verifying your executor and the death certificate, and releasing what you chose once those conditions are met. It does not replace the statute, your estate plan, or legal advice.
Other state guides
Educational information only. Not legal advice. Laws, provider procedures, federal requirements, and individual circumstances can change the result in a specific matter. Consult qualified counsel for legal advice.