Chad Graham Law is a corporate and commercial law practice serving incorporated business owners, entrepreneurs, and developers across South Edmonton, Beaumont, Leduc, and Nisku, with virtual service throughout Alberta. The work ranges from straightforward incorporations to multi-step corporate reorganizations, estate freezes, business acquisitions, and shareholder agreements.
Alberta's business environment rewards owners who build on solid legal foundations. The share structure you incorporate shapes your tax planning options for a decade. The agreement you don't sign with your partner is the one you'll litigate. In every case, the goal is the same: give your business the legal structure it actually needs, explained in terms you can use.
Incorporating in Alberta establishes your business as a separate legal entity under the Business Corporations Act, RSA 2000, c B-9. Incorporation provides limited liability protection, opens up significant tax planning opportunities, and creates a structure that supports long-term growth, financing, and eventual succession. We handle provincial incorporations under the Alberta BCA
Wondering whether incorporation makes sense for you? Read Why Incorporate Your Business in Alberta.
The share structure you incorporate with shapes your tax planning options for years. Getting it right at the start, including building in share classes for income splitting, a future estate freeze, or holding company integration, is significantly easier and cheaper than restructuring later.
We advise on:
For business owners whose companies have grown in value, a corporate reorganization — often structured as an estate freeze — caps your capital gains exposure at today’s value and passes future growth to the next generation or a family trust. It is the central mechanic connecting corporate law to estate planning for Alberta business owners.
This work sits at the intersection of corporate law and estate and succession planning, and requires careful coordination with your accountant. We implement the legal side of reorganizations designed by your tax advisor, including:
A shareholder agreement governs the relationship between shareholders in a private Alberta corporation, such as what happens when one wants out, how decisions are made, what happens on death or incapacity, and how disputes are resolved. It is the document that prevents disputes from becoming catastrophic, and one of the cheapest pieces of succession planning available to an Alberta business owner.
We draft and advise on shareholder agreements and unanimous shareholder agreements (USAs) under the Alberta BCA, including provisions for:
Read more: The Agreement Every Alberta Business Partner Needs (But Almost No One Has).
Alberta corporations carry ongoing obligations: annual returns, an up-to-date minute book, filings for changes to directors or registered offices, and current resolutions. We assist corporations with ongoing maintenance and bring neglected minute books back into good standing.
Buying or selling a business involves decisions that shape your tax exposure, your liability, and your long-term flexibility. The structure of the deal is often the most consequential decision in the transaction, and it needs to be made deliberately.
We act for buyers and sellers in business acquisitions and sales across the Edmonton and Leduc County region, including:
We draft and review a wide range of commercial agreements for Alberta businesses, including:
We work with Alberta developers and builders on the legal side of raw land acquisitions, lot development transactions, and related corporate structuring including corporate holding structures, agreement for sale documentation, and GST treatment of development transactions.
For most of our clients, there is no clean line between the business and the estate. The shares are the largest asset either way. A shareholder agreement that says one thing and a Will that says another is not two documents working together.
Chad Graham Law handles both sides from the same file: the corporate structure that runs the business today, and the estate and succession plan that decides what happens to it later, including probate and estate administration when an estate holds shares in a private corporation.
“Chad was very thorough and professional. He communicates clearly, acts quickly, and made sure we understood every step along the way, including options that were available to us that we hadn’t considered. Highly recommend!” — M
Corporate reorganization and estate freeze work requires close coordination between lawyer and accountant. The accountant designs the tax strategy; the lawyer implements the legal structure. Neither can do the other’s job, and a plan that isn’t documented correctly isn’t a plan at all.
We work regularly alongside Edmonton-area accounting firms on estate freezes, corporate reorganizations, trust structures, and business transitions. If your accountant has recommended a reorganization and you need legal implementation, contact us.
We understand that not everyone wants to start online. If you feel your estate requires a more tailored approach, we are here to help.
Still Have Questions?
Whether you are incorporating a new business, restructuring an existing one, or working through a sale or acquisition, ten minutes is usually enough to tell you whether you need a lawyer, whether you need one now, and what it will cost. No charge and no obligation.
Serving South Edmonton, Beaumont, Leduc County, Nisku, and clients throughout Alberta.
Alberta Corporate & Business Law
For most Alberta-based businesses operating primarily in Alberta, provincial incorporation under the Alberta Business Corporations Act is appropriate and simpler. Federal incorporation under the CBCA may be preferable if you anticipate operating across multiple provinces or want national protection for your corporate name. We can help you assess the right choice for your situation.
A unanimous shareholder agreement (USA) is a specific type of shareholder agreement that, under the Alberta BCA, can restrict or transfer powers ordinarily belonging to the directors of a corporation. It is common in closely held corporations and joint ventures where shareholders want direct control over key decisions. In most multi-shareholder Alberta corporations, some form of shareholder agreement is strongly advisable — and even sole shareholders can use a USA to govern what happens on death or incapacity.
Start with a conversation between your accountant, yourself, and us. The accountant determines the valuation and tax structure; we need to understand the corporate structure and desired outcome before advising on legal implementation. Estate freezes work best when the legal and tax advisors are aligned from the outset.
A straightforward provincial incorporation typically takes one to three business days through Alberta Corporate Registry once the articles are filed. The organizational steps — share issuance, director appointments, organizational resolutions — take additional time depending on complexity. We can move quickly when a timeline is pressing.
We serve business owners across South Edmonton, Beaumont, Leduc, Nisku, and the surrounding corridor, with offices in South Edmonton (Summerside) and Beaumont, and virtual service throughout Alberta.
