Estate of Riley, No. 01-22-00504, 2023 WL 5208046 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] Aug. 15, 2023, no pet. h.).
The proponent of the will filed the will for probate a few weeks after the expiration of the normal four year period under Estates Code § 256.003. The trial court denied probate and the appellate court affirmed. The proponent claimed not to be in default because although she knew probate was needed, she relied on non-lawyer’s opinion that the time period was five years. The court reasoned that because the proponent “failed to challenge the trial court’s ruling sustaining the [contestant’s] objections based on limitations and default” that denial of probate was proper.
Moral: Failure to challenge a trial court’s finding may preclude that issue from being considered on appeal.