How long do you have to contest a will in Wyoming?

Three months from the first publication of the notice of probate. W.S. 2-6-301 lets an interested person contest a will within the time designated in the notice required by W.S. 2-6-122 or 2-7-201, and both notices state that any action to set aside the will must be filed within three months from the date of the first publication or be forever barred. Under W.S. 2-6-306, if no one files a contest petition in that time, the probate of the will is conclusive.

What court hears a will contest in Wyoming?

The district court that admitted the will. W.S. 2-2-101 gives the district courts exclusive original jurisdiction of all matters relating to the probate and contest of wills, and W.S. 2-6-301 says the contest petition is filed in the court in which the will was proved. Wyoming has no separate probate court; Title 2 calls the district court sitting in probate the probate court.

What are the grounds to contest a will in Wyoming?

W.S. 2-6-301 does not list grounds. It asks for a written petition containing allegations against the validity of the will or against the sufficiency of the proof. The statutes that make a will valid supply the usual targets: W.S. 2-6-101 requires a testator of legal age and sound mind, W.S. 2-6-112 and 2-6-113 set the signing rules, and W.S. 2-6-117 and 2-6-125 cover revocation. Undue influence and fraud are not defined in Title 2, so their elements come from Wyoming court decisions.

Who pays the costs of a Wyoming will contest?

It depends on the outcome. W.S. 2-6-305 says the fees and expenses are paid by the party contesting the will if the will is affirmed. If the probate is revoked, the costs are paid by the party who resisted the revocation, or out of the decedent's property, as the court directs.

Can you get a jury trial in a Wyoming will contest?

Yes, on written demand. W.S. 2-2-309 says that if no jury is demanded the court tries the issues, and that if either party demands a jury in writing in a matter triable under W.S. 2-2-308, one is had as in other civil cases. W.S. 2-6-303 then has the jury, or the court if there is no jury, decide whether the will is invalid or not sufficiently proved.

Does a self-proving affidavit stop a Wyoming will contest?

No. W.S. 2-6-204 says a will executed under W.S. 2-6-114 is probated without further proof, which settles how the will gets admitted. W.S. 2-6-301 still lets an interested person contest the validity of the will after admission, within the time in the notice.

How long do you have to contest a revocable living trust in Wyoming?

A trust runs on its own clock. W.S. 4-10-604(a) gives the earlier of two years after the settlor's death or 120 days after the trustee sent the person a copy of the trust instrument and a notice with the trust's existence, the trustee's name and address, and the time allowed to sue. Under 4-10-604(d), a person who misses that window is forever barred.

Wyoming Will Contests | Settled Estate

A Wyoming will contest is a petition, filed in the district court that admitted the will, asking the court to revoke the probate. W.S. 2-6-301 lets any interested person file it after the will is admitted, and the deadline is three months from the first publication of the notice of probate. Miss that date and W.S. 2-6-306 makes the probate conclusive.

Three features set Wyoming apart. A will is admitted first, often the day the petition is filed and without notice, and the fight comes afterward. The published notice itself states the contest deadline, so the clock is printed in the newspaper. And W.S. 2-6-305 shifts the fees and expenses to whichever side loses.

A contest is litigation with a high bar. The deadline is short and firm, the loser can end up paying the costs, and many contests fail. This page describes the process as the Wyoming Statutes state it as of the 2026 edition. It is general information and says nothing about whether a challenge fits your family's facts. That question belongs to a licensed Wyoming attorney, and because the window is only three months, timing matters when a family seeks that advice. For the proceeding a contest interrupts, see how Wyoming probate works.

How a Will Gets Admitted Before Anyone Can Contest It

Wyoming does the admission first and the argument second. Under W.S. 2-6-203, when a petition for probate of a will is filed, the court or the clerk may hear it at once, with or without notice, and admit the will on proof of due execution. Subsection (b) says notice is not required and there is no delay in the hearing unless good cause appears.

Proof at that stage is light:

A self-proved will under W.S. 2-6-114 is probated without further proof, per W.S. 2-6-204.
A witnessed will without the affidavit is proved by the oral or written testimony of one or more subscribing witnesses under W.S. 2-6-205.
A handwritten will is proved the same as any other private writing under W.S. 2-6-206.
A lost or destroyed will needs more. Under W.S. 2-6-207(b), it must be proved to have existed at the testator's death, or to have been fraudulently destroyed during the testator's life, and its provisions must be clearly and distinctly proved by at least two credible witnesses.

Once the will is in, W.S. 2-6-209 has the clerk, personal representative or attorney mail a copy of the order admitting it, with a copy of the will, by certified mail to each named beneficiary and each heir. That envelope is often the first word a family member gets that a will exists.

A will simply filed with the clerk under W.S. 2-6-121, without probate, has not been admitted. W.S. 2-6-301 opens only "after a will has been admitted to probate," so the contest process described here starts once someone takes the next step.

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The Deadline to Contest a Wyoming Will

The deadline comes from the notice, and both notices set the same period. W.S. 2-6-301 lets an interested person contest "within the time designated in the notice provided for in W.S. 2-6-122 or 2-7-201." Which notice applies turns on how the will was probated:

Route	Notice statute	Who publishes	Contest deadline stated in the notice
Will admitted with a personal representative appointed	W.S. 2-7-201	The personal representative	Three months from the date of first publication
Will admitted without administration	W.S. 2-6-122(d)	The petitioner, at the petitioner's expense	Three months from the date of first publication

Under W.S. 2-7-201, the personal representative publishes the notice once a week for three consecutive weeks in a daily or weekly newspaper of general circulation in the county where the probate is pending. The statute requires the notice to say that any action to set aside the probate of the will shall be brought within three months from the date of the first publication "or thereafter be barred." The same notice starts the three-month window for creditor claims, which is why the two deadlines usually land on the same day. The Wyoming probate timeline shows where that date falls in the estate's calendar.

W.S. 2-6-122(d) sets up the same structure for a will probated without administration: publication once a week for three consecutive weeks, and a notice stating that any action to set aside the will "shall be filed in the Court within three (3) months from the date of first publication of this notice, or thereafter be forever barred." W.S. 2-6-122(e) applies the contest sections, 2-6-301 through 2-6-306, to that route.

Here is why the date matters so much. W.S. 2-6-306 says that if no person files a contest petition within the time designated in the notice, "the probate of the will is conclusive." The clock runs from the first publication, not from when a family member learned of the will or received the mailed copy.

Who Can Contest a Wyoming Will

W.S. 2-6-301 opens the door to "any person interested." The Wyoming Probate Code does not define that phrase for this section. The notices in W.S. 2-7-201 and 2-6-122 are addressed to all persons interested in the estate, and the mailing and service rules show who the law expects to hear about a contest:

the executors of the will, who are served with a summons under W.S. 2-6-302;
all legatees and devisees mentioned in the will;
all heirs, so far as the petitioner knows them;
guardians of any of them who are minors, and personal representatives of any who have died.

Whether a particular person has enough of a stake to file is a question for the court and a Wyoming attorney, and it usually turns on whether that person would receive more if the will failed.

A surviving spouse left out of a will has a separate route that is not a contest at all. Under W.S. 2-5-101 and 2-5-105, the spouse may petition for an elective share within three months after the will is admitted or within thirty days after being advised of the right, whichever expires last. Wyoming surviving spouse rights covers that election.

What a Contest Can Challenge

W.S. 2-6-301 does not list grounds. It requires a written petition "containing his allegations against the validity of the will or against the sufficiency of the proof, and praying that the probate be revoked." That gives a contest two targets: the will itself, and the proof the court accepted when it admitted the will.

The statutes that make a will valid supply the usual allegations. Each one ties back to what makes a Wyoming will valid.

Age and Sound Mind

W.S. 2-6-101 lets "any person of legal age and sound mind" make a will. A contest that says the testator lacked the mental capacity to make a will at the time of signing is an attack on this section. The statute does not define sound mind, so the test comes from Wyoming court decisions rather than the code.

Undue Influence and Fraud

Title 2 does not define undue influence or fraud as contest grounds. The phrase "under no constraint or undue influence" appears in the self-proving affidavit forms in W.S. 2-6-114, where the testator and witnesses swear to it. The elements a challenger must prove come from Wyoming court decisions, which this guide does not summarize.

A Signing That Missed a Step

W.S. 2-6-112(a) requires a will, other than a handwritten one, to be in writing or typewritten, witnessed by two competent witnesses, and signed by the testator or by some person in his presence and by his express direction. Under 2-6-112(b), witnesses may appear by audio-video communication technology if they can see and hear the testator in real time. W.S. 2-6-113 accepts a will that is entirely in the testator's handwriting and signed by the testator's own hand, witnessed or not.

Two rules narrow this ground. W.S. 2-6-116 validates a will that meets Wyoming's rules or the law of the place where it was signed, or where the testator was domiciled, had a place of abode, or was a national. And W.S. 2-6-112(a) says a witness who later becomes incompetent does not defeat the will if the witness was competent when attesting.

An interested witness does not void the will either. Under 2-6-112(a), a subscribing witness takes nothing under the will unless two other disinterested and competent witnesses also signed, but may still receive up to the share the witness would inherit without a will.

Revocation

W.S. 2-6-117(a) revokes a will, or any part, by a later will that revokes it expressly or by inconsistency, or by burning, tearing, cancelling, obliterating or destroying it with the intent to revoke, done by the testator or by another person in the testator's presence and at the testator's direction. A contest claiming the admitted will was revoked, or that a later will exists, is an argument under this section.

Divorce is its own revocation rule. W.S. 2-6-125(b) says a divorce or annulment immediately revokes any revocable disposition to the former spouse and to the former spouse's relatives, and any nomination of them as executor or trustee, unless the instrument, a court order or a property settlement says otherwise.

Insufficient Proof

The second target in W.S. 2-6-301 is "the sufficiency of the proof." Because W.S. 2-6-203 lets a will in on proof of due execution without notice, a contest can argue that the proof the court accepted, such as a witness statement under 2-6-205 or the evidence behind a lost will under 2-6-207, did not establish the will.

A Killer Takes Nothing, With or Without a Contest

W.S. 2-14-101(a) says no person who feloniously takes, or causes or procures another to take, the life of another may inherit from or take by devise or legacy from the deceased person, take survivorship or payable-on-death property, or serve as personal representative, executor, trustee or agent. Under 2-14-101(c), the killer's share passes as though the killer had died first. That bar works on its own terms and does not need a will contest to invalidate the whole will.

No-Contest Clauses

Some wills include a clause saying a beneficiary who challenges the will loses the gift. A search of Title 2 of the Wyoming Statutes found no section addressing these clauses, and the Uniform Trust Code in Title 4 has none either. Their effect in Wyoming turns on the clause's wording and on court decisions. How a particular clause would apply to a particular challenge is a question for a licensed Wyoming attorney who has read the will.

How the Contest Proceeds

The petition goes to the court that proved the will. W.S. 2-2-101 gives the district courts exclusive original jurisdiction over the probate and contest of wills, and Wyoming has no separate probate court. Venue follows W.S. 2-2-102: ordinarily the county where the decedent lived at death. You can find the clerk of district court for each county on the Wyoming courts directory.

Let's break down what happens after filing:

Service and notice. Under W.S. 2-6-302, a summons is served on the executors of the will, and the clerk sends notice by certified mail, with a copy of the petition, to all legatees and devisees in the will and all heirs known to the petitioner.
Civil rules apply. The same section says the summons, service and proceedings are governed by the Wyoming Rules of Civil Procedure. W.S. 2-2-308 applies those rules to probate proceedings generally, including new trials and appeals, and calls the party affirming the contestant and the party denying the contestee.
A lawyer for absent parties. Under W.S. 2-2-310, at or before the hearing of a will contest, the court may appoint an attorney for minors without a general guardian in the county, for nonresidents, and for other unrepresented interested persons, paid from the estate.
The judge. W.S. 2-2-110 requires a judge who is next of kin, a beneficiary, or otherwise interested to call in another district judge. A judge who witnessed the will may not hear the contest.
Trial. Under W.S. 2-2-309, the court tries the issues unless a party demands a jury in writing, in which case one is had as in other civil cases.

What Happens When the Court Decides

W.S. 2-6-303 says that if, on trial, the jury or the court decides the will is invalid or not sufficiently proved to be the testator's last will, "the probate shall be annulled and revoked." Under W.S. 2-6-304, the executor's powers then cease, but the executor is not liable for any act done in good faith before the revocation.

If the will falls, the estate passes under an earlier valid will if one exists, and otherwise under Wyoming intestate succession. A new personal representative may then take over the duties described in Wyoming executor duties.

Costs follow the result under W.S. 2-6-305:

Will affirmed: the party contesting the will pays the fees and expenses.
Probate revoked: the costs are paid by the party who resisted the revocation, or out of the decedent's property, as the court directs.

Contesting a Revocable Trust Instead

Property in a revocable living trust does not pass under the will, so a will contest does not reach it. A trust contest runs on a different clock. W.S. 4-10-604(a) allows a proceeding to contest the validity of a revocable trust within the earlier of two years after the settlor's death or 120 days after the trustee sent the person a copy of the trust instrument and a notice of the trust's existence, the trustee's name and address, and the time allowed to sue. Under 4-10-604(d), missing that window bars the claim forever. The two-year trust contest limit is covered in the trust guide.

Threshold Questions in a Wyoming Contest

Four questions generally decide whether a Wyoming contest is available at all: whether the will has been admitted to probate, whether the three months from first publication have run, whether the facts fit an allegation against the will's validity or the proof, and whether the will carries a penalty clause. Most will contests do not succeed, and the answers depend on the actual documents and the court file, so applying them to one estate is a job for a licensed Wyoming attorney.

Sources:

Title: W.S. 2-6-301, Filing and contents of petition to revoke. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-302, Summons and notification; proceedings governed by civil rules. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-303, Annulment and revocation. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-304, Cessation of executor's powers; immunity. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-305, Liability for payment of contest costs. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-306, When probate deemed conclusive. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-7-201, Admission of will or estate to probate and appointment of personal representative; contents; form. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-122, Petition and procedure for filing and probate of will without administration. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-203, Hearing upon petition; notice not required. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-207, Proof; lost or destroyed will; court may restrain personal representatives pending disposition. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-209, Order admitting or disallowing probate; mailing of copies. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-101, Right to make and dispose; exception. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-112, Will to be in writing; number and competency of witnesses; signature of testator; subscribing witness not to benefit; exception. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-114, Self-proving wills. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-117, Revocation by writing or by act. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-6-125, Revocation of probate and nonprobate transfers by divorce or annulment; effect; revival; other changes excluded. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-2-101, Exclusive jurisdiction conferred on district courts. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-2-309, Trial by court or jury. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 2-14-101, Taking of life precludes one from inheritance, insurance or survivorship benefits; how benefits distributed; notification of insurer necessary. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
Title: W.S. 4-10-604, Limitation on action contesting validity of revocable trust; distribution of trust property. Publisher: Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 4. Publication Date: 2026-05-08. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title04.pdf

It is not legal advice.