Community Property

Texas, New Mexico, Louisiana, California, Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Washington, and Wisconsin are community property states. On the death of a spouse, half the community passes (under the will or intestacy); the surviving spouse retains the other half. This dramatically affects the heirship math on minerals acquired during marriage.

The classifying question — is this asset community or separate? — is fact-intensive. Minerals owned before marriage stay separate. Minerals inherited during marriage stay separate. Minerals bought during marriage with community funds become community. Minerals bought during marriage with traceable separate funds remain separate, but the tracing is the landman's nightmare.

For curative work, the consequence is that a married decedent in a community property state has potentially TWO chains of title flowing forward: one for their separate property half and one for their community half. Failing to differentiate leads to the executor's deed accidentally conveying the surviving spouse's 50% interest along with the decedent's.

Worked examples

• Husband and wife buy minerals in 1985 with community funds. Husband dies intestate in 2010 with two adult children. Husband's 1/2 community passes 1/3 to wife and 2/3 to children (Texas §201.003); wife retains her own 1/2 community. Result: wife owns 5/6, each child owns 1/12. Easy to mis-divide as wife 1/2, each child 1/4.