Alaska Court System Self-Help

Informal probate is a court process that allows the Personal Representative to transfer the property of a person who died to the persons who are supposed to receive it with minimal court supervision. If a probate is necessary, this is the most common type.

An informal probate includes these steps:

• Appointing a Personal Representative to manage the probate.
• Gathering property owned by the person who died.
• Notifying creditors and beneficiaries or heirs.
• Handling debts and taxes.
• Wrapping up the final business affairs of the person who died.
• Transferring legal title of the property owned by the person who died to the proper persons.
• Filing any documents required by the state or federal government.
• Filing all documents required by the court.

In an informal probate, the Personal Representative can take these steps without asking the court for approval. Informal probate is simpler than formal probate. In fact, informal probate cases usually don’t require any hearings.

You can watch a very short presentation on Starting an Informal Probate Case .

To qualify for informal probate, you must meet all of these requirements:

• If the person who died made a Will, you have the original Will.
• If the person who died made more than one Will, the latest Will cancels (revokes) the older Wills.
• If the person who died didn't have a will, there is no dispute among the interested persons about who will be the Personal Representative.
• You have priority to be the Personal Representative or those with equal or higher priority agree that you can be the Personal Representative.
• No one has objected to the informal probate or your appointment as Personal Representative.
• If it has been more than three years since the person died, there are limited situations in which you can open an informal probate case. However, after three years a formal probate case gives you more options than an informal probate case. You may want to talk to a lawyer.

If the estate is small enough, it may qualify as a “small estate” which has fewer requirements than a regular informal probate but still requires filing an informal probate case and some court interaction. To determine if the estate qualifies as a small estate, you first file an informal probate case. You then prepare an Inventory of all property to determine the value. Then, add up the following:

• Homestead Allowance
• Family Allowance
• Exempt Property
• Probate costs
• Funeral costs
• Medical costs of the person's last illness

If the total value of all estate property in the Inventory, after subtracting liens and debts against the property, is less than all of the above amounts added together, the estate qualifies as a small estate. Learn more about Small Estates.

If you do not meet the requirements for either informal probate or a small estate, you will usually need to petition for formal probate. Learn more about formal probate.

To open an informal probate and appoint a Personal Representative where the person who died made a Will you will need to gather the following documents and file them with the court:

• Certified copy of the Death Certificate. Some judges will accept a letter from the funeral home if the death certificate is not yet available.
• Original Will if the person who died made a Will. If you are not sure if the person made a will, you will need to try to find it by looking in some of the common locations.
• Request to Start Informal Probate and Appoint a Personal Representative When There Is a Will, P-315, plus any forms listed on form P-315 that you need for your situation. Sign the Request before a notary or clerk. Notary services are available for free at all state court offices.
• Statement Starting Informal Probate and Appointing a Personal Representative When There is a Will, P-316
• If you are filing as the Personal Representative, prepare the Acceptance of Duties by Personal Representative and Letters Testamentary by Court, P-335. Sign the Statement of Acceptance before a notary or clerk. Notary services are available for free at all state court offices. Do not sign the Letters. Leave a space for the court to sign the Letters when it appoints you as Personal Representative.
• If you are filing as the Personal Representative and there are people with equal or higher priority to be the personal representative than you, file Nomination for Appointment of Personal Representative with Equal or Lower Priority: P-306, for each person with an equal or higher priority. These people must sign the form and can also waive the bond requirement using this form.
• If you are filing as the Personal Representative, you must address the bond requirement one of these ways:
  • If the Will waived the bond requirement, then you do not need to file a bond or any additional forms, or
  • Have each person eligible to inherit property waive the bond requirement using the Waiver of Bond Requirement: P-334 unless they have already waived it using Nomination for Appointment of Personal Representative with Equal or Lower Priority: P-306, or
  • File proof that you posted a bond, or
  • Ask the court to excuse the bond and receive an order excusing it.
  Read more about filing a bond or waiving bond.
• Pay the filing fee: The filing fee or cost to file a Probate Estates case is $250. If you cannot afford the fee you can submit the Filing Fee or Fee Waiver TF-920.

If you have any questions, you should talk to a probate lawyer.

You can watch a very short presentation on Starting an Informal Probate Case .

If you are not sure if the person made a will, you will need to try to find it by looking in some of the common locations.

To open an informal probate where the person who died did not make a Will you need to gather the following documents and file them with the court.

• Certified copy of the Death Certificate. Some judges will accept a letter from the funeral home if the death certificate is not yet available.

Next, you will need to prepare the following documents and file them with the court:

• Request to Start Informal Probate and Appoint a Personal Representative When There Is No Will, P-325. Sign the Request before a notary or clerk. Notary services are available for free at all state court offices.
• Statement Starting Informal Probate and Appointing a Personal Representative When There is No Will, P-326
• If you are filing as the personal representative, the Acceptance of Duties by Personal Representative and Letters of Administration by Court, P-336
• If there are people with equal or higher priority to be the personal representative than you, file Nomination for Appointment of Personal Representative with Equal or Lower Priority, P-306, for each person with an equal or higher priority. These people must sign the form and can also waive the bond requirement using this form.
• If you are filing as the Personal Representative, you must address the bond requirement one of these ways:
  • Have each person eligible to inherit property waive the bond requirement using the Waiver of Bond Requirement, P-334 unless they have already waived it using Nomination for Appointment of Personal Representative with Equal or Lower Priority, P-306.
  • File proof that you posted a bond.
  • Ask the court to excuse the bond and receive an order excusing it.
  Read more about filing a bond or waiving bond.
• Pay the filing fee: The filing fee or cost to file a Probate Estates case is $250. If you cannot afford the fee you can submit the Filing Fee or Fee Waiver TF-920.

If you have any questions, you should talk to a probate lawyer.

You can watch a very short presentation on Starting an Informal Probate Case .

The court will not sign the Letters or appoint a Personal Representative until a certain amount of time has passed. The amount of time depends on whether the person who died was an Alaska resident.

• If the person who died was an Alaska resident:
  • 5 days after the person's death.
• If the person who died was not an Alaska resident:
  • 30 days after the person's death; or
  • 5 days after the person's death but only if (1) the Will says that Alaska law applies to the probate or (2) you have already been appointed as the Personal Representative in another state.

After the waiting period, the court usually takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to approve and sign the Letters.

Once the court has appointed you the Personal Representative in an informal probate case where the person who died made a Will, the court will mail the following documents to you:

• A signed and certified copy of Acceptance of Duties by Personal Representative and Letters Testamentary by Court, P-335
• A signed and certified copy of the Statement Starting Informal Probate and Appointing a Personal Representative When There is a Will, P-316

You can also pick the documents up directly from the court if you need them sooner. Call the court to find out whether they are ready.

It is a good idea to ask for 3 to 5 extra certified copies of the Letters since you will need to show the Letters to companies when you transfer property owned by the person who died. Many companies will ask to keep a certified copy for their records. The court charges a small fee for extra certified copies of the Letters.

Once the court has appointed you the Personal Representative in an informal probate case where the person who died did not make a Will, the court will mail the following documents to you:

• A signed and certified copy of Acceptance of Duties by Personal Representative and Letters of Administration by Court, P-336
• A signed and certified copy of the Statement Starting Informal Probate and Appointing a Personal Representative When There is No Will, P-326

You can also pick the documents up directly from the court if you need them sooner. Call the court to find out whether they are ready.

It is a good idea to ask for 3 to 5 extra certified copies of the Letters since you will need to show the Letters to companies when you transfer property owned by the person who died. Many companies will ask to keep a certified copy for their records. The court charges a small fee for extra certified copies of the Letters.

For information on how to use the Letters and your duties as Personal Representative, see Personal Representative Duties and Responsibilities.