State statute provides exclusive method for creating survivorship rights in community property.

In a case of first impression, the court in Beatty v. Holmes, 233 S.W.3d 475 (Tex. App. 2007), held that satisfying the requirements of Texas Probate Code § 452 is the sole method for creating rights of survivorship in community property, rejecting the argument that the general authorization for the creation of non-probate property in Probate Code § 450 provides an alternative method.

In a companion case, Beatty v. Holmes, 233 S.W.3d 494 (Tex. App. 2007), the court applied its prior holding to the facts of the case and held that extrinsic evidence could not be considered in determining whether a brokerage account agreement satisfied the requirements of § 452 and that if the brokerage agreement validly created survivorship rights, those rights did not apply to share certificates issued out of the account.