Wyoming Chancery Court

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Business court of Wyoming

The Chancery Court of the State of Wyoming (the Wyoming Chancery Court) was created in 2019 as a specialized business court to provide a streamlined judicial forum for addressing commercial, business, and trust cases litigated in Wyoming's state courts, with a unique focus on digital assets and blockchain technology.

## History

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Wyoming's legislature passed a statute in 2019 creating the Wyoming Chancery Court, which was signed into law the same year.[1][2] Unlike a traditional chancery court, which is a court of equity, Wyoming's new chancery court was given jurisdiction over purely monetary disputes as well as actions in equity, with a limited subject matter jurisdiction focusing on disputes of a business and commercial nature.[3] One early stated goal for the Chancey Court involves Wyoming seeing itself in a unique role involving cryptocurrency and blockchain technology:[4] "Coupled with Wyoming’s innovative legal framework for digital assets and blockchain technologies, the Chancery Court should attract blockchain businesses and cryptocurrency companies to the state."[5]

The court went live on December 1, 2021.[6]

## Details

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The court has its own set of rules.[7][8] Under Wyoming Rule of Civil Procedure for the Chancery Court 3(a), all parties to a case must agree to the Chancery Court's jurisdiction, so a single party may timely object to that jurisdiction and have the case dismissed from the Chancery Court.[9] The Chancery Court does not have jury trials, and is to employ alternative dispute resolution, limited motion practice, and carefully monitored and tailored discovery in making sure cases are handled expeditiously and effectively.[10][11]

The court can have up to three judges,[1] and currently (as of June 2024) has two.[12] These judges have concurrent statewide jurisdiction with Wyoming's district court (the trial court of general jurisdiction) judges[13] over matters within the Chancery Court's jurisdiction.[1] Chancery Court judges receive the same salaries as district court judges, and will be similarly chosen on a merit-based system, though they must be knowledgeable in commercial law.[1] There is a separate clerk for the Chancery Court.[14]

It is the first state trial court in Wyoming to use electronic filing.[11]

## References

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1. ^ a b c d Angell, Mary (April 2020). "Coming Soon, Chancery Court, Wyoming's newest court could be up and running in 2021, Wyoming Lawyer". digitaleditions.walsworth.com. Retrieved 2024-08-17.
2. ^ "About the Chancery Court – Wyoming Judicial Branch". Retrieved 2024-06-06.
3. ^ "2021 Wyoming Statutes :: Title 5 - Courts :: Chapter 13 - Chancery Courts :: Article 1 - General Provisions :: Section 5-13-115 - Purpose and Jurisdiction". Justia Law. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
4. ^ Long, Caitlin. "What Do Wyoming's 13 New Blockchain Laws Mean?". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
5. ^ "News Release, Chancery Court Open for Business" (PDF). December 1, 2021.
6. ^ "About the Chancery Court – Wyoming Judicial Branch". Retrieved 2024-06-07.
7. ^ "Uniform Rules for Chancery Court of Wyoming – Wyoming Judicial Branch". Retrieved 2024-06-06.
8. ^ "Wyoming Rules of Civil Procedure for the Chancery Court" (PDF).
9. ^ Lavery, Hon. Richard (April 24, 2024). "AishangYou Limited, Dada Business Trading Co., Limited, et al. vs. WeTrade Group, Inc., et al., Case No. CH-2023-0000028" (PDF).
10. ^ "2021 Wyoming Statutes :: Title 5 - Courts :: Chapter 13 - Chancery Courts :: Article 1 - General Provisions :: Section 5-13-115 - Purpose and Jurisdiction". Justia Law. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
11. ^ a b Burnigham, Benjamin (October 2021). "Wyoming Lawyer October 2021 Page 18". digitaleditions.walsworth.com. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
12. ^ "Chancery Court – Wyoming Judicial Branch". Retrieved 2024-06-06.
13. ^ "About the District Courts – Wyoming Judicial Branch". Retrieved 2024-06-06.
14. ^ "2022 Wyoming Statutes :: Title 5 - Courts :: Chapter 13 - Chancery Courts :: Article 2 - Clerk :: Section 5-13-201 - Office Created; Salary; Deputies". Justia Law. Retrieved 2024-06-06.