Estate Planning for Digital Assets

Not effectively. A standard Texas will can name who receives digital assets, but it does not automatically grant the legal authority to access them. Under the Texas Estates Code RUFADAA provisions, fiduciary access authority must be expressly granted in your governing documents. Without that language, platforms and exchanges may legally refuse access to your executor, regardless of what the will says.

RUFADAA stands for the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, adopted in Texas as part of the Texas Estates Code. It gives fiduciaries, including executors, trustees, and agents under a power of attorney, a legal framework to access a decedent's or incapacitated person's digital accounts. However, RUFADAA authority is not automatic. It must be expressly granted in your will, trust, or power of attorney documents to override platform terms of service.

A digital executor is the person you designate to manage and transfer your digital assets after death. Texas law does not require a separate digital executor, but naming one and defining their authority in your estate planning documents is a best practice. Without a clear designation, your general executor may lack the technical knowledge or documented authority to access crypto wallets, cloud storage, or platform accounts effectively.

If no one has your private keys and no succession plan is documented, your cryptocurrency is permanently inaccessible. Texas probate courts cannot compel a blockchain to release funds. Your estate may list the asset, but without the private key or a recovery method, heirs receive nothing. A secure key succession plan, documented separately from your public will, is the only reliable safeguard for crypto holdings of any significant value.

You should not. When a Texas will is admitted to probate, it becomes a public record in the county clerk's office. Any passwords, private keys, or seed phrases written into the will are exposed to anyone who requests a copy. Sensitive access credentials should be stored in a secure, separately referenced document, such as a password manager record or encrypted file, pointed to by your estate plan but not contained in the public will itself.

Only if it expressly grants RUFADAA authority. A general Texas durable power of attorney does not automatically extend to digital assets or online accounts. The document must include specific language authorizing your agent to access, manage, and control digital property under the Texas Estates Code RUFADAA framework. This matters especially for incapacity planning, since your agent may need to access accounts long before your will becomes effective.

At Robbins Estate Law, digital asset estate planning is priced on a flat-fee basis, so you know the full cost before any work begins. There are no hourly billing surprises and no hidden fees. Pricing varies based on the complexity of your holdings and the documents required. Most clients with digital assets need a coordinated package that includes a will or trust, a RUFADAA-compliant power of attorney, and a digital executor designation. Contact us for a specific quote.

A complete plan typically includes: a will or revocable trust with express RUFADAA fiduciary access language; a durable power of attorney that extends digital asset authority to incapacity; a digital executor designation with defined scope; and a secure, separately stored digital asset inventory covering account credentials, crypto wallet locations, and private key recovery methods. For significant crypto holdings, a structured key succession plan is also essential. Texas Estates Code Chapter 114 governs the TODD framework for certain property transfers as well.