Court Safekeeping of Original Wills in Alaska

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Who may deposit

Under Alaska Prob. R. 5(a), an agent must attach the testator's written authorization or a copy of a general power of attorney. The agent supplies the testator's address, and the court mails the testator a copy of the signed agreement and receipt.

Envelope and filing record

Rule 5(a) requires a signed agreement naming and giving addresses for the people to receive the will after death. The clerk assigns the will a number, maintains an alphabetical index, and stores the will in a locked fireproof cabinet or safe.

Lifetime custody and retrieval

Alaska Stat. § 13.12.515 requires confidentiality during life. Under Probate Rule 5(a), the testator or a person given specific written authority to view or receive the will must show positive identification. A conservator may examine it under confidentiality procedures and must also show identification.

Opening and release after death

Under Probate Rule 5(c), death notification triggers contact with the designated recipient and mailing a copy. The court retains the original as a public document, places it in an opened estate file, or transfers it to another court that gives written notice it needs the original; it retains a copy after transfer.

What trips people up

Probate Rule 5(b) permits a judicial district's presiding judge to name local receivers, but they accept only for transmission; they must send the will, deposit fee, and agreement immediately to the superior-court clerk or registrar by certified or registered mail. Administrative Rule 9(b)(2)(B) sets the ordinary deposit fee at $50. The same fee rule exempts a guardian's or conservator's postdeath deposit for a ward or protected person; Alaska Stat. § 13.26.545(e) directs a conservator holding a deceased protected person's will to deliver it to court and inform a named executor or beneficiary.

Common questions

Is depositing the will required? No. The form incorporated in Probate Rule 5(a) says deposit is voluntary and does not establish the will's validity.

Does the person named to receive the will get the original after death? Probate Rule 5(c) directs the court to mail that person a copy. The original remains with the court or transfers to another court for an estate file.

Statutes and sources

• Alaska Stat. §§ 13.12.515 and 13.26.545(e); Alaska Probate Rule 5; Alaska Administrative Rule 9(b)(2)(B): current official text, quoted with URLs and access dates above.