Alberta Private Guardianship — Court Process Guide for Relatives

The school says they need a court order. The doctor says they need a court order. You need a map.

You have been raising this child for months — maybe longer. The kitchen table is covered in school forms, medical consent letters, and half-finished government applications. Everyone keeps asking for "proof of guardianship," but nobody tells you how to get it.

Alberta has two entirely separate guardianship routes, filed under different statutes, with different forms, different background checks, and different court procedures. Most relatives do not know two routes exist until a filing is rejected and they start over from scratch. The government's own website uses "Private Guardianship" specifically for children in Director care — which is not what most grandparents and relatives need.

The Court Filing Organizer: every form, check, and deadline in one workflow

The Court Filing Organizer is the core of this guide. It replaces the scattered web of government portals, outdated PDFs, and confusing court registry pages with a single, step-by-step filing system built for self-represented relatives in Alberta.

It starts with a Statutory Route Decision Matrix that tells you, in plain language, whether your application belongs under the Family Law Act (for private family arrangements) or the Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act (for children in provincial care). From there, every chapter follows the route you need — clearly flagged throughout so you never mix up instructions meant for someone else's situation.

What's inside

• Statutory Route Decision Matrix — answer three questions and know whether you are filing under the FLA or CYFEA, which court handles your case, and which form package to assemble
• Background Check Clearance Log — a tracking system for coordinating the Police Vulnerable Sector Check and the Child Intervention Record Check so neither expires before you file
• Form-by-form walkthrough — plain-language guidance for completing Form FL-10, Form FL-34, and the CYFEA application package, section by section, with tips on what judges actually look for in sworn affidavits
• Parent Service Workflow — how to serve biological parents correctly, how to document search attempts when a parent cannot be found, and how to prepare an Affidavit of Attempted Service for an Order for Substitutional Service or Order Dispensing with Service
• Court Hearing Preparation Sheet — what to bring, what to expect, and how to present your documents to the judge in the Alberta Court of Justice or Court of King's Bench
• Fee schedule and fee waiver instructions — current 2026 filing fees at both courts, plus a step-by-step walkthrough of the fee waiver application for caregivers who cannot afford the $100 filing fee
• Post-order checklist — once the order is granted, exactly which institutions to notify (school, doctor, CRA, passport office) and what certified copies to request
• Resource directory — verified contact information for Legal Aid Alberta, the Centre for Public Legal Education Alberta (CPLEA), Student Legal Services, courthouse Resolution and Court Administration Services, and Children and Family Services regional offices

Who this guide is for

• Grandparents, aunts, uncles, older siblings, and family friends who are already caring for a child in Alberta and need legal authority for school, medical, travel, or benefits
• Relatives who have had care and control of a child for more than six months under a private family arrangement
• Kinship carers whose child is under a Temporary or Permanent Guardianship Order with Children and Family Services and want to apply for private guardianship under CYFEA
• Self-represented applicants who plan to file without a lawyer

Who this guide is NOT for

• Parents applying for guardianship of their own child — parent guardianship is automatic under FLA s. 20 and does not require a court application
• Anyone involved in an active custody dispute with a parent — contested applications require a family lawyer, not a process guide
• People looking to become approved foster carers — foster licensing is a separate process managed by Children and Family Services

Why free online resources are not enough

The Alberta government portal tells you the rules. The court website gives you blank forms. Neither gives you a filing sequence. Neither tells you how to coordinate two background checks with different processing times so one does not expire before the other arrives. Neither walks you through what to do when a parent has disappeared and you need substitutional service — just that it exists.

The official Private Guardianship Self-Help Guide on Open Alberta is flagged as out of date. It references the old "Provincial Court" name (now the Alberta Court of Justice since April 2023), discontinued administrative contacts, and the Child and Youth Support Program — which was discontinued on September 1, 2025.

This guide is current for 2026, written for relatives who are doing this without a lawyer, and organized as a workflow — not a summary of rights you already know you have.

Satisfaction guarantee

If the guide does not help your situation, email [email protected] for a full refund, no time limit. No questions, no forms, no waiting period.

Printable tools included

The guide comes with seven standalone printable worksheets you can fill in by hand: a Route Decision Matrix, a Court Filing Checklist, a Background Check Clearance Log, a Service Tracking Log, a Hearing Preparation Sheet, a Post-Order Notification Checklist, and a Resource Contact Card with key Alberta agencies and free legal help. Print the ones you need and keep them in your filing folder.

Get started

Download the free Alberta Private Guardianship Checklist — a one-page overview of the filing stages — and decide whether the full guide is right for your situation. Or get the complete Court Process Guide for and start organizing your application today.