About Legal Forms

Official Forms

In general, Texas has very few official legal forms. This is why you will not always find a free fill-in-the-blank form for your situation.

You may be able to draft your own custom form by using a form template or drafting guide.

Court Websites. If there is an official form for a legal procedure, it is usually found on the court's or court clerk's website. We link to many in our guides.
Law Libraries. The library has many books and e-books with templates for legal forms. Texas residents can access e-books with a free library account or check out print titles from our Austin location. You can also visit a law library near you.
A Lawyer. A lawyer can help create an appropriate form for your situation. To find an attorney, see our Find a Lawyer and Legal Help guides.

For more on landlord/tenant law, see our Landlord/Tenant Law guide.

Self-Help Repair Packet (Austin Tenants Council)
This packet from the Austin Tenants Council will help you demand repairs from your landlord. It contains two informational brochures, two sample repair request letters, two fill-in-the-blank repair requests, a fill-in-the-blank “Notice to Terminate” letter, and a fill-in-the-blank “Petition for Relief under Section 92.0563 of the Texas Property Code.”
Tenant's Formal Request Through Court For Repairs (eFileTexas.gov)
eFileTexas's self-help section contains an interactive interview that will help you create completed forms for a repair and remedy case. Select "Landlord-Tenant: Tenant's formal request through court for repairs" from the list of types of filings.

Provide or Repair Locks — Demand Letter (Texas Tenant Advisor)
Demand that your landlord provide or repair locks that are required by law.
Re-Key Locks — Demand Letter (Texas Tenant Advisor)
Demand that your landlord re-key locks as required by law.

Smoke Detector — Demand Letter (Austin Tenants' Council)
Demand the installation, inspection, or repair of the smoke detector in your rental unit.

Privacy — Demand Letter (Texas Tenant Advisor)
Demand that your landlord stop invading your privacy. (Available through the Internet Archive.)

Utility Interruption — Demand Letter (Austin Tenants' Council)
Demand service restoration to your rental unit after an illegal utility interruption.

Application Deposit Refund — Demand Letter (Texas Tenant Advisor)
Demand that your landlord refund your application deposit.
Security deposit refund — demand letter (Texas Tenant Advisor)
Demand that your landlord refund your security deposit after you've moved out.
Petition for Return of Security Deposit (Texas Tenant Advisor)
File a lawsuit against your landlord for the return of your security deposit.

Petition for Retaliation (TexasLawHelp.org)
A tenant who believes their landlord punished them for exercising their rights under the law can use this form to file a lawsuit.

Legal Self-Help Guide for Texas Tenants Affected by Natural Disaster (Texas RioGrande Legal Aid)
This self-help packet contains information and several forms for Texans whose rental units have been affected by a natural disaster. It contains forms related to requests for repairs, requests for rent reduction, lease terminations due the landlord's failure to repair, and other topics.

For more on landlord/tenant law, see the Evictions page of our Landlord/Tenant Law guide.

Eviction Answer (TexasLawHelp.org)
This toolkit from TexasLawHelp.org contains the forms and instructions you will need to respond to an eviction suit.
Eviction — Defendant's Original Answer (Texas Tenant Advisor)
Respond when your landlord has started an eviction suit against you. (Available through the Internet Archive.)
I Want to Avoid Eviction by Negotiating With My Landlord (TexasLawHelp.org)
Forms and instructions for negotiating a hold off agreement with your landlord to avoid eviction for a lease violation or nonpayment of rent.
Motion to Set Aside a Default Eviction Judgment — TexasLawHelp.org
Ask the court to set aside a default judgment for eviction if you missed the trial for a good reason.
Eviction appeal — affidavit of inability to post appeal bond or pay costs for appeal (Texas Tenant Advisor)
State to the court that you wish to appeal an eviction decision and that you do not have the financial means to post an appeal or cash bond or pay court costs for the appeal.
Eviction & Landlord/Tenant Forms (Texas Justice Court Training Center)
Scroll down to the section titled "Evictions and other Landlord-Tenant Forms" to find many forms related to evictions and landlord/tenant disputes.
Eviction & Landlord/Tenant Forms in Spanish (Texas Justice Court Training Center)
Several Spanish forms for when an eviction case has been filed against you.

Eviction & Landlord/Tenant Forms (Texas Justice Court Training Center)
Scroll down to the section titled "Evictions and other Landlord-Tenant Forms" to find many forms related to evictions and landlord/tenant disputes.
Eviction Petition (eFileTexas.gov)
Evict a tenant in Justice of the Peace (JP) court when your tenant has not paid rent under a rental agreement. The interview is called "Landlord-Tenant: Landlord's request to remove tenant from rented property."
Eviction Appeal Information and Forms for Landlords (Travis County Law Library)
Appeal your case after your attempt to evict has been denied (Travis County residents).

Many e-books contain forms or drafting guides. Texas residents can access e-books with a free library account.

Texas real estate guide
This multi-volume set of e-books provides comprehensive coverage of real property law, transactions, and litigation. Along with drafting guides and forms, it includes discussions of the law with citations to statutes, case law, regulations, and court rules.
Every tenant's legal guide
Written in straightforward and easy-to-understand language, Nolo’s guide to tenant rights is an excellent explanation of the legal pitfalls a renter can encounter.
Every landlord's legal guide
This book from Nolo is intended to help landlords with legal issues, including screening tenants, leases, security deposits, sublets, the landlord’s duty to repair, right of entry, and evictions.

Available when you visit the library in person.

Texas forms real estate : commercial & residential [print book]
This title is from Jones McClure, who also publishes the O'Connor's series. It is formatted very similarly and includes a wide range of available real estate forms. Chapter 2 contains lease forms.

Note The library cannot help you fill out forms or determine what form you should use.