Rule 52.Findings by the court; judgment on partial findings; reserved questions

Group VI: Trials · Last amended March 1, 2017 · Last verified July 14, 2026

In one sentenceRule 52 tells a judge who is deciding a case without a jury how to record the facts behind the ruling, and lets a party ask the court to amend those findings or rule against someone on a single issue before the trial is over.

Full Text of Rule 52

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c) (d)

(a) General and Special Findings by Court. —

(1) Trials by the Court or Advisory Jury. — Upon the trial of questions of fact by the court, or with an advisory jury, it shall not be necessary for the court to state its findings, except generally for the plaintiff or defendant. Findings of fact and conclusions of law are unnecessary on decisions of motions under Rule 12 or 56 or any other motion except as provided in Rule 52(c).

(A) Requests for Written Findings. — If one of the parties requests it before the introduction of any evidence, with the view of excepting to the decision of the court upon the questions of law involved in the trial, the court shall state in writing its special findings of fact separately from its conclusions of law;

(B) Written Findings Absent Request. — Without a request from the parties, the court may make such special findings of fact and conclusions of law as it deems proper and if the same are preserved in the record either by stenographic report or by the court’s written memorandum, the same may be considered on appeal. Requests for findings are not necessary for purposes of review.

(2) Findings of a Master. — The findings of a master, to the extent that the court adopts them, shall be considered as the findings of the court.

(b) Amendment or Additional Findings. — On a party’s motion filed no later than 28 days after entry of judgment; the court may amend its findings - or make additional findings - and may amend the judgment accordingly. The motion may accompany a motion for a new trial under Rule 59. When special findings of fact are made in actions tried without a jury, the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the findings may be later questioned whether or not in the court the party raising the question objected to the findings, moved to amend them, or moved for partial findings.

(c) Judgment on Partial Findings. — If a party has been fully heard on an issue in a trial without a jury and the court finds against the party on that issue, the court may enter judgment as a matter of law against that party with respect to a claim or defense that cannot under the controlling law be maintained or defeated without a favorable finding on that issue, or the court may decline to render any judgment until the close of all the evidence. The party against whom entry of such a judgment is considered shall be entitled to no special inference as a consequence of such consideration, and the court may weigh the evidence and resolve conflicts. Such a judgment shall be supported by findings as provided in Rule 52(a).

(d) Reserved Questions. —

(1) In General. — In all cases in which a court reserves an important and difficult constitutional question arising in an action or proceeding pending before it, the court, before sending the question to the supreme court for decision, shall

(A) dispose of all necessary and controlling questions of fact and make special findings of fact thereon, and

(B) state its conclusions of law on all points of common law and of construction, interpretation and meaning of statutes and of all instruments necessary for a complete decision of the case.

(2) Constitutional Questions. — No constitutional question shall be deemed to arise in an action unless, after all necessary special findings of fact and conclusions of law have been made by the court, a decision on the constitutional question is necessary to the rendition of final judgment. The constitutional question reserved shall be specific and shall identify the constitutional provision to be interpreted. The special findings of fact and conclusions of law required by this subdivision of this rule shall be deemed to be a final order from which either party may appeal, and such appeal may be considered by the supreme court simultaneously with the reserved question.

End

Amendment History

Added February 2, 2017, effective March 1, 2017.

Plain-English Summary

When a judge, rather than a jury, decides a case, Rule 52 controls how that decision gets written down. A general ruling for one side is enough unless a party asks for written findings before any evidence is heard, in which case the judge must separate the factual findings from the legal conclusions. A judge may also volunteer written findings without being asked, and those findings can support an appeal later. If the case involved a master, the master’s adopted findings count as the court’s own. After judgment, a party has 28 days to ask the court to amend or add to its findings, and that request can travel alongside a motion for a new trial under Rule 59.

Rule 52 also lets a judge cut a case short. If one side has had a full chance to present evidence on an issue and the judge rules against that side, the judge can enter judgment on that issue right away instead of waiting for the whole trial to wrap up, and the losing party gets no special benefit of the doubt just because the ruling came early. Finally, the rule covers the rare situation where a court reserves a difficult constitutional question for the Wyoming Supreme Court: the trial judge must first resolve every factual and legal question that doesn’t depend on the constitutional issue, so the Supreme Court gets a clean, narrow question to decide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to ask the judge for written findings of fact?

No. In a bench trial the judge can rule for the plaintiff or the defendant without spelling out every finding. But if you ask before any evidence is introduced, the judge must state the factual findings and legal conclusions separately, which can matter a great deal on appeal.

What happens when a case is tried with an advisory jury?

An advisory jury gives the judge a recommendation, but the judge still makes the final call and is not required to issue detailed findings unless a party requested them before trial began.

How long do I have to ask the court to amend its findings?

You must file the motion no later than 28 days after judgment is entered. Many parties pair this motion with a new-trial motion under Rule 59.

Can a judge rule against me before all the evidence is in?

Yes, if you have had a full opportunity to present evidence on a particular issue and the judge is unconvinced, the judge may enter judgment against you on that issue without waiting for the rest of the trial. The judge is allowed to weigh the evidence and resolve conflicts in reaching that decision.

What is a reserved constitutional question?

It is a procedure for sending an important, unresolved constitutional issue to the Wyoming Supreme Court. Before doing so, the trial court must first decide every other factual and legal question in the case, so the constitutional issue is the last remaining piece.

Source & verification. Rule text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Wyoming Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the Supreme Court of Wyoming. Last verified July 14, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: findings of fact and conclusions of lawbench trial findingsmotion to amend findingsjudgment on partial findingsreserved constitutional question