Rule 77.District courts and clerks; notice of an order or judgment

Group IX: District Courts and Clerks · Last amended July 3, 2023 · Last verified July 14, 2026

In one sentenceRule 77 keeps the district courts always open for filings and process, sets the clerk's office hours, and requires the clerk to serve a copy of every order or judgment on the parties.

Full Text of Rule 77

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

(a) District Courts Always Open. — The district courts shall be deemed always open for the purpose of filing any pleading or other paper, of issuing and returning any mesne or final process, and of making and directing all interlocutory motions, orders and rules.

(b) Trials and Hearings; Orders in Chambers. — All trials upon the merits shall be conducted in open court and, so far as convenient, in a regular courtroom. Any other act or proceeding may be done or conducted in chambers without the attendance of the clerk or other court officials and at any place within the state; but no hearing, other than one ex parte, may be conducted outside of the county in which the action is pending without the consent of all parties affected thereby who are not in default.

(1) Hours. — The clerk’s office, with the clerk or a deputy in attendance, must be open during all business hours every day except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays (by designation of the legislature, appointment as a holiday by the governor or the chief justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court, or any day designated as such by local officials).

(2) Orders. — All motions and applications in the clerk’s office for issuing mesne process, for issuing final process to enforce and execute judgments, for entering defaults or judgments by default, and for other proceedings which do not require allowance or order of the court are grantable of course by the clerk; but the clerk’s action may be suspended, altered or rescinded by the court upon cause shown.

(d) Service of Orders or Judgments. —

(1) Service. — Immediately upon the entry of an order or judgment the clerk shall provide and serve a copy thereof to every party who is not in default for failure to appear. The clerk shall record the date of service and the parties served in the docket. Service by the clerk may be accomplished by mail, hand delivery, clerk’s boxes, or electronic means, including service by efiling, if available. The clerk shall provide envelopes and postage for the mailings. If service is accomplished by electronic means, this rule supersedes the requirements of W.S. § 5-3-210 to attach the seal of the court to all writs and orders. Any party may in addition serve a notice of such entry in the manner provided in Rule 5(b) for the service of papers.

(2) Time to Appeal Not Affected by Lack of Notice. — Lack of notice of the entry by the clerk does not affect the time to appeal or relieve, or authorize the court to relieve, a party for failure to appeal within the time allowed, except as permitted by the Wyoming Rules of Appellate Procedure.

End

Amendment History

Added February 2, 2017, effective March 1, 2017; amended May 2, 2023, effective July 3, 2023.

Plain-English Summary

Litigation does not wait for a judge to be sitting on the bench. Rule 77 declares the district courts always open for filing papers, issuing and returning process, and handling interlocutory motions and orders — routine business the clerk's office can process regardless of whether a trial is underway. Trials on the merits, though, belong in open court, ordinarily in a courtroom, while other proceedings can happen in chambers without the clerk present, anywhere in the state — except that a hearing other than an ex parte one cannot move outside the county where the case is pending unless every non-defaulting party agrees.

The rule also fixes the clerk's office hours — open every business day except weekends and designated holidays — and lets the clerk grant routine, non-discretionary requests, such as issuing process or entering a default, on the clerk's own authority, subject to the court's power to undo that action for cause. Once the court enters an order or judgment, the clerk must promptly get a copy to every party who has not defaulted, by mail, hand delivery, clerk's box, or electronic means, and log who was served and when. Still, a party's failure to receive notice from the clerk does not stop the appeal clock or excuse a missed deadline, beyond whatever relief the appellate rules separately allow.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I file a pleading with the court on a weekend or holiday?

The district courts are deemed always open for filing pleadings and papers and for issuing process, though the clerk's office itself keeps set business hours.

What are the clerk's office hours?

The clerk's office must be open, with the clerk or a deputy present, during business hours every day except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.

Can a hearing in my case be held outside the county where it was filed?

Only an ex parte hearing can be held outside that county on its own; any other hearing needs the consent of every party who is not in default.

How will I learn that the court has entered an order or judgment?

The clerk must promptly serve a copy on every non-defaulting party by mail, hand delivery, clerk's box, or electronic means, and must record in the docket the date of service and who was served.

If the clerk never notifies me of a judgment, does that extend my time to appeal?

No. Lack of notice from the clerk does not affect the deadline to appeal, except to whatever extent the Wyoming Rules of Appellate Procedure separately allow relief.

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

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