Petition for Probate of Will and for Letters Testamentary (Wyoming)

PETITION FOR PROBATE OF WILL AND FOR LETTERS TESTAMENTARY

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE [____] JUDICIAL DISTRICT, STATE OF WYOMING, IN AND FOR [COUNTY] COUNTY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Caption and Case Information
2. Petitioner Information
3. Decedent Information
4. Basis for Jurisdiction and Venue
5. The Will Offered for Probate
6. Heirs and Devisees of the Decedent
7. Nomination and Consent of Executor; Property of the Estate
8. Bond
9. Prayer for Relief
10. Verification
11. Notice of Probate / Certificate of Mailing
12. Attachments Checklist

1. CAPTION AND CASE INFORMATION

Probate No.: [____________________________________]

Hearing Date (if set): [__/__/____] Time: [____]

2. PETITIONER INFORMATION

Name: [PETITIONER FULL LEGAL NAME]
Address: [STREET ADDRESS], [CITY], Wyoming [ZIP CODE]
Telephone: [________________________________]
Email: [________________________________]
Capacity: Petitioner is the Executor named in the Decedent's Will and seeks probate of the Will and issuance of Letters Testamentary; the person named as Executor consents to act (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(a)(ii)).
Relationship to Decedent: [RELATIONSHIP]

3. DECEDENT INFORMATION

4. BASIS FOR JURISDICTION AND VENUE

a. The Decedent died on [__/__/____] (the jurisdictional facts under Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(a)(i)).

b. ☐ The Decedent was domiciled in [COUNTY] County, Wyoming at the time of death; the District Court of this county has jurisdiction over the probate of the Will and the administration of the estate.

c. ☐ The Decedent was a nonresident who left property in this county; venue is proper here.

d. The Decedent died testate, leaving a Last Will and Testament dated [__/__/____] (and codicil(s) dated [__/__/____], if any).

e. No defect of form or in the statement of jurisdictional facts actually existing shall make void the probate of the Will (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(b)).

5. THE WILL OFFERED FOR PROBATE

a. The original Last Will and Testament of the Decedent, dated [__/__/____], accompanies this Petition and is offered for probate.

b. Execution and witnesses. The Will was executed in compliance with Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-112: it is in writing or typewritten, signed by the testator (or by some person in the testator's presence and by the testator's express direction), and witnessed by two competent witnesses. The attesting witnesses are:

c. Self-proving / proof:
☐ The Will is self-proved by the acknowledgment of the testator and the affidavits of the witnesses, made before an officer authorized to administer oaths and evidenced by the officer's certificate under seal, in substantially the statutory form (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-114); such execution satisfies the signing requirements of § 2-6-112 and the Will may be admitted without further proof.
☐ The Will is not self-proved; proof will be made by the oral or written testimony (Testimony of Subscribing Witness) of one or more subscribing witnesses (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-205).
☐ All witnesses are deceased or unavailable; the Will will be proved by two credible disinterested witnesses to the handwriting, or by other sufficient evidence (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-205(c)).

d. To the best of Petitioner's knowledge, the instrument offered is the Decedent's last Will, was validly executed, and has not been revoked.

6. HEIRS AND DEVISEES OF THE DECEDENT

The names, ages, and residences of the heirs and devisees of the Decedent, so far as known to Petitioner (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(a)(iii)):

Devisees and beneficiaries named in the Will:

Heirs at law (persons who would take by intestate succession, Wyo. Stat. § 2-4-101):

☐ Decedent was survived by a spouse: [NAME] (note elective-share rights, Wyo. Stat. § 2-5-101).

7. NOMINATION AND CONSENT OF EXECUTOR; PROPERTY OF THE ESTATE

a. The Will nominates [EXECUTOR FULL LEGAL NAME], whose residence/address is [________________________________], as Executor. Petitioner is the person named, consents to act, and does not renounce the right to Letters Testamentary (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(a)(ii), (a)(v)).

b. Probable value and character of the property of the estate (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(a)(iv)):

c. The name of the person for whom Letters Testamentary are prayed is [PETITIONER / EXECUTOR FULL LEGAL NAME] (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-201(a)(v)).

d. Before Letters Testamentary issue, Petitioner will take and subscribe the oath of personal representative (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-101).

8. BOND

a. Bond (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-110):
☐ The Will waives bond / directs that the Executor serve without bond; Petitioner requests appointment without bond as directed by the Will.
☐ Petitioner will furnish bond in the amount fixed by the Court, conditioned on faithful performance of the Executor's duties.

b. Estimated value of the personal estate (basis for bond amount): $[________________]

c. All Letters Testamentary and bonds, with the affidavits and certificates thereon, shall be recorded by the clerk of the court (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-103).

9. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Petitioner respectfully requests that the Court:

a. Admit the Last Will and Testament of the Decedent dated [__/__/____] (and any codicil) to probate;

b. Find that the Decedent died testate and that the Will was duly executed and proved;

c. Appoint Petitioner as Executor of the estate;

d. Direct issuance of Letters Testamentary to Petitioner upon the taking of the oath (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-101) and the giving of any required bond;

e. ☐ Waive bond ☐ Fix bond in the amount of $[________________] (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-110);

f. Grant such other and further relief as is just and proper.

10. VERIFICATION

STATE OF WYOMING, COUNTY OF [____________]

I, [PETITIONER FULL LEGAL NAME], being first duly sworn, depose and state that I am the Petitioner; that I have read the foregoing Petition for Probate of Will; and that the matters stated therein are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information, and belief.

Petitioner Signature: ______________________________________

Printed Name: [PETITIONER FULL LEGAL NAME]

Subscribed and sworn to before me this [__/__/____].

Notary Public: ______________________________________ My commission expires: [__/__/____]

11. NOTICE OF PROBATE / CERTIFICATE OF MAILING

Notice of probate (Wyo. Stat. §§ 2-7-201, 2-7-205): Upon admission of the Will to probate and issuance of Letters, the personal representative shall publish a Notice of Probate once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, stating that any action to set aside the Will must be brought within three (3) months from the date of first publication, and notifying creditors to file claims within three (3) months from first publication (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-201). A true copy of the published notice shall be mailed by first-class mail to the surviving spouse, all heirs at law, and all beneficiaries named in the Will not later than one (1) week after the first publication (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-205(a)(i)), and to reasonably ascertainable creditors and other required recipients within the statutory periods.

☐ Notice of Probate published once a week for three successive weeks in [NEWSPAPER NAME] (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-201).
☐ True copy of notice mailed to the surviving spouse, heirs at law, and beneficiaries within one week after first publication (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-205(a)(i)).
☐ Notice mailed to reasonably ascertainable creditors (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-205(a)(ii)).
☐ Notice to the Department of Health / Department of Family Services, if applicable (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-205(a)(iii), (iv)).

Signature: ______________________________________
Printed Name: [PETITIONER / ATTORNEY NAME]
Wyoming State Bar No.: [________________] (if applicable)
Address: [________________________________]
Telephone / Email: [________________________________]

12. ATTACHMENTS CHECKLIST

☐ Original Last Will and Testament (and any codicil)
☐ Self-proving acknowledgment/affidavits (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-114), or Testimony of Subscribing Witness (Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-205)
☐ Certified copy of Death Certificate
☐ Oath of Personal Representative (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-101)
☐ Bond, if required (Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-110)
☐ Proposed Order Admitting Will to Probate and Appointing Personal Representative
☐ Proposed Letters Testamentary (to be recorded, Wyo. Stat. § 2-3-103)
☐ Notice of Probate for publication (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-201); Affidavit of Publication and Affidavit of Mailing (Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-205)
☐ Filing fee

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Wyoming Statutes, Title 2 — Wills, Decedents' Estates and Probate Code: W.S. §§ 2-3-101, 2-6-112, 2-6-114, 2-6-201, 2-6-205, 2-7-201, and 2-7-205.
• Wyoming Judicial Branch — A Walk Through Probate: https://www.wyocourts.gov/