How to settle an estate
in Alberta — without a lawyer.

You're the "Personal Representative."

In Alberta, the person who settles an estate is the Personal Representative (PR) — what most people still call the executor. If there's a will naming you, you're an executor. If there's no will, the court appoints an administrator. Same job, different door in.

It matters because the PR is personally responsible for getting it right — paying the right debts, notifying the right people, and distributing to the right beneficiaries. Do it carefully and it's a paperwork job. Do it sloppily and the liability lands on you. So the goal isn't speed. It's order.

Probate or administration?

Before you do anything else, ask each institution holding an asset whether they'll release it without a grant. Sometimes a small, simple estate needs no court process at all — and you've just saved yourself weeks.

Five steps, in order.

• 01Gather the documents. Original will and any codicils, the death certificate, your ID as PR, a list of beneficiaries, and a full inventory of every asset and debt.
• 02Value the estate at date of death. Bank balances as of the date of death, and appraisals for property or anything whose value isn't obvious. This valuation drives your forms and your fee.
• 03Prepare the Surrogate forms package. The application, supporting affidavits, the inventory, and beneficiary notices. File online through the Surrogate Digital Service (SDS), or on paper using the GA forms, starting with the GA1 Grant Application.
• 04Serve the required notices. Beneficiaries and other required parties must be formally notified under the Surrogate Rules. Missing a notice is the classic DIY mistake — don't skip anyone.
• 05File at the right judicial centre. The one nearest where the deceased lived. Pay the fee, and wait for the grant to be issued.

Less than you've been led to fear.

Alberta's probate application fee is set by the value of the estate and runs from $35 to $400 — that's the whole government fee, not a percentage. The four-figure numbers people dread are lawyer fees, not court fees.

For a clean, uncontested estate, doing it yourself is genuinely realistic. The cost is your time and your attention to detail — which is exactly where a good template package pays for itself.

Some estates need a lawyer. Know which.

Hand it to a professional if any of these are true:

• The will is contested — or you expect a family member to challenge it.
• The estate may be insolvent — debts exceed assets, which changes the order you pay people.
• Complex or foreign assets — a business, property in another province or country, or trusts.
• Missing or unknown heirs, or a beneficiary who can't be located.
• Active family conflict — when emotions are high, a neutral professional is worth every dollar.

This article is the map.
The manual is the toolkit.

We turned the whole process into one Alberta-specific field manual — the document checklist, the inventory templates, the beneficiary-notice letters, and a plain-English walk through the Surrogate forms so you know exactly what goes where. Built so a careful person can file an uncomplicated estate without paying a lawyer four figures to do the typing.