A will nobody can find is, in practice, a will that does not exist. Here is how wills are located in Alberta, and what the law expects of an executor who cannot find one.
Where to look in Alberta
| Item | Alberta |
|---|---|
| Governing statute | Wills and Succession Act |
| Court | Court of King's Bench of Alberta |
| Handwritten (holograph) wills | Valid |
| Probate cost | Flat fees by estate value band, capped at $525 — among the lowest in Canada. An estate of $300,000 and an estate of $30 million pay the same $525. |
| Spouse’s share on intestacy | Where all of the intestate’s descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse (or adult interdependent partner), that person takes the entire estate. Where any descendant is not, they take the greater of $150,000 or 50% of the net estate, and the residue passes to the descendants. Alberta’s adult interdependent partners — unlike Ontario common-law partners — inherit on the same footing as a spouse. |
| Will registry | No general government will registry. The Government of Alberta states plainly: "There is no will registry in Alberta." The one narrow exception is that an international will may be registered with the Office of the Public Trustee, which records who to contact — not the will itself. |
| Claims against the estate | Family maintenance and support claims under the Wills and Succession Act. |
A diligent search
- The deceased’s lawyer, and the firm’s successor if it has closed.
- Safety deposit boxes at every bank they used.
- Home safes, filing cabinets, and digital storage.
- Will registries — government where one exists, private otherwise.
- The provincial law society, which may hold records for a wound-up practice.
Where an original will was last known to be with the deceased and cannot be found, a court may presume it was destroyed deliberately — and administer the estate as an intestacy. Documenting the search is what rebuts that.
Why this is a religious question too
The hadith on wills speaks of the document being "kept ready with him" — findability is part of the obligation, not an administrative afterthought. Recording that a will exists, and where, is the gap the Islamic Will Registry exists to close.
Common questions
What if we cannot find the original?
A copy may be admissible, but where the original was last known to be with the deceased a court may presume it was destroyed deliberately and treat the estate as intestate.
Who is allowed to search for a will?
Typically the executor named in a will, or a family member applying to administer the estate.
Does registering a will make it valid?
No. A registry records that a will exists and where it is kept. Validity is a separate question governed by the province's formal requirements.
Citations & sources
Every factual claim on this page traces to a source below. Details change — check the original source before relying on any figure, fee or legal position. Anything under “further reading” is related material, not a source for what is stated here.
- What to do when someone has died — Canada Revenue Agency
- Wills and Succession Act, SA 2010, c W-12.2 — Alberta King's Printer
- Probate fees by province / territory — TaxTips.ca
- Surah an-Nisa 4:11–12, 4:176 — Quran.com
- Book of Wills (Wasaya) — Sahih al-Bukhari, Sunnah.com
- Religion by census metropolitan area, 2021 Census — Statistics Canada
- Holograph handwritten will ontario — Treadstone Law
- Filing deadline deceased person ontario — Treadstone Law
- Matrimonial home one spouse never lived there — Treadstone Law
- How does intestacy treat common law children — Treadstone Law
- Executor claims against estate creditor — Treadstone Law
- Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law