Title 20, Title 20 — Domestic Relations

Procedure when exercising jurisdiction over nonresident. Personal jurisdiction acquired by a tribunal of this state in a proceeding under this act or other law of this state relating to a support order continues as long as a tribunal of this state has continuing, exclusive jurisd…

Initiating and responding tribunal of this state. Under this act, a tribunal of this state may serve as an initiating tribunal to forward proceedings to a tribunal of another state and as a responding tribunal for proceedings initiated in another state or a foreign country.

Simultaneous proceedings. (a) A tribunal of this state may exercise jurisdiction to establish a support order if the petition or comparable pleading is filed after a pleading is filed in another state or a foreign country only if: (i) The petition or comparable pleading in this s…

Continuing exclusive jurisdiction. (a) A tribunal of this state that has issued a child support order consistent with the law of this state has, and shall exercise, continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify its child support order if the order is the controlling order and: (i)…

(e) A tribunal of this state that determines by order which is the controlling order under paragraph (b)(i) or (ii) or subsection (c) of this section or that issues a new controlling order under paragraph (b)(iii) of this section shall state in that order: (i) The basis upon whic…

Determination of controlling child support orders. (a) If a proceeding is brought under this act and only one (1) tribunal has issued a child support order, the order of that tribunal controls and shall be recognized. (b) If a proceeding is brought under this act, and two (2) or …

Child support orders for two or more obligees. In responding to registrations or petitions for enforcement of two (2) or more child support orders in effect at the same time with regard to the same obligor and different individual obligees, at least one (1) of which was issued by…

Credit for payments. A tribunal of this state shall credit amounts collected for a particular period pursuant to any child support order against the amounts owed for the same period under any other child support order for support of the same child issued by a tribunal of this sta…

Proceedings under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this act, W.S. 20-4-151 through 20-4-169 apply to all proceedings under this act. (b) Repealed By Laws 2005, ch. 103, § 3. (c) An individual petitioner or a support enforcement agency…

Proceeding by minor parent. A minor parent, or a guardian or other legal representative of a minor parent, may maintain a proceeding on behalf of, or for the benefit of, the minor's child.

Application of law of this state. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this act, a responding tribunal of this state shall: (i) Apply the procedural and substantive law generally applicable to similar proceedings originating in this state and may exercise all powers and provide al…

Duties of initiating tribunal. (a) Upon the filing of a petition authorized by this act, an initiating tribunal of this state shall forward the petition and its accompanying documents: (i) To the responding tribunal or appropriate support enforcement agency in the responding stat…

Duties and power of responding tribunal. (a) When a responding tribunal of this state receives a petition or comparable pleading from initiating tribunal or directly pursuant to W.S. 20-4-151(c), it shall cause the petition or pleading to be filed and notify the petitioner where …

Inappropriate tribunal. If a petition or comparable pleading is received by an inappropriate tribunal of this state, the tribunal shall forward the pleading and accompanying documents to an appropriate tribunal of this state or another state and notify the petitioner where and wh…

Duties of support enforcement agency. (a) A support enforcement agency of this state, upon request, shall provide services to a petitioner in a proceeding under this act. (b) A support enforcement agency of this state that is providing services to the petitioner shall: (i) Take a…

Duty of attorney general. (a) If the state attorney general determines that the support enforcement agency is neglecting or refusing to provide services to an individual, the attorney general may order the agency to perform its duties under this act or may provide those services …

Private counsel. An individual may employ private counsel to represent the individual in proceedings authorized by this act.

Duties of state information agency. (a) The department of family services child support enforcement section is the state information agency under this act. (b) The state information agency shall: (i) Compile and maintain a current list, including addresses, of the tribunals in th…

Pleadings and accompanying documents. (a) In a proceeding under this act, a petitioner seeking to establish a support order, to determine parentage of a child or to register and modify a support order of a tribunal of another state or a foreign country shall file a petition. Unle…

Nondisclosure of information in exceptional circumstances. If a party alleges in an affidavit or a pleading under oath that the health, safety or liberty of a party or child would be jeopardized by disclosure of specific identifying information, that information shall be sealed a…

Costs and fees. (a) The petitioner may not be required to pay a filing fee or other costs. (b) If an obligee prevails, a responding tribunal of this state may assess against an obligor filing fees, reasonable attorney's fees, other costs and necessary travel and other reasonable …

Limited immunity of petitioner. (a) Participation by a petitioner in a proceeding under this act before a responding tribunal, whether in person, by private attorney, or through services provided by the support enforcement agency, does not confer personal jurisdiction over the pe…

Nonparentage as defense. A party whose parentage of a child has been previously determined by or pursuant to law may not plead nonparentage as a defense to a proceeding under this act.

Special rules of evidence and procedure. (a) The physical presence of a nonresident party who is an individual in a tribunal of this state is not required for the establishment, enforcement or modification of a support order or the rendition of a judgment determining parentage of…

Communications between tribunals. A tribunal of this state may communicate with a tribunal outside this state in a record, or by telephone, electronic mail or other means, to obtain information concerning the laws, the legal effect of a judgment, decree or order of that tribunal,…

In all other respects, W.S. 20-4-151 through 20-4-185, 20-4-190, 20-4-194 and 20-4-197 do not apply and the tribunal shall apply the procedural and substantive law of this state.

Receipt and disbursement of payments. (a) A support enforcement agency or tribunal of this state shall disburse promptly any amounts received pursuant to a support order, as directed by the order. The agency or tribunal shall furnish to a requesting party or tribunal of another s…

Establishment of support order. (a) If a support order entitled to recognition under this act has not been issued, a responding tribunal of this state with personal jurisdiction over the parties may issue a support order if: (i) The individual seeking the order resides outside th…

Employer's receipt of income withholding order of another state; employer's compliance with income withholding order of another state; compliance with multiple income withholding orders. (a) An income withholding order issued in another state may be sent by or on behalf of the ob…

Administrative enforcement of orders. (a) A party or support enforcement agency seeking to enforce a support order or an income withholding order, or both, issued in another state or a foreign support order may send the documents required for registering the order to a support en…

Registration of order for enforcement. A support order or income withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order may be registered in this state for enforcement.

Procedure to register order for enforcement. (a) Except as otherwise provided in W.S. 20-4-206, a support order or an income withholding order of another state or a foreign support order may be registered in this state by sending the following records to the appropriate tribunal …

Effect of registration for enforcement. (a) A support order or income withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order is registered when the order is filed in the registering tribunal of this state. (b) A registered support order issued in another state or a …

Choice of law. (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) of this section, the law of the issuing state or foreign country governs: (i) The nature, extent, amount and duration of current payments under a registered support order; (ii) The computation and payment of arrear…

Notice of registration of order. (a) When a support order or income withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order is registered, the registering tribunal of this state shall notify the nonregistering party. The notice shall be accompanied by a copy of the r…

Procedure to contest validity or enforcement of registered order. (a) A nonregistering party seeking to contest the validity or enforcement of a registered support order in this state shall request a hearing within the time required by W.S. 20-4-177. The nonregistering party may …

Contest of registration or enforcement. (a) A party contesting the validity or enforcement of a registered support order or seeking to vacate the registration has the burden of proving one (1) or more of the following defenses: (i) The issuing tribunal lacked personal jurisdictio…

Confirmed order. Confirmation of a registered support order, whether by operation of law or after notice and hearing, precludes further contest of the order with respect to any matter that could have been asserted at the time of registration.

Procedure to register child support order of another state or foreign country for modification. (a) A party or support enforcement agency seeking to modify, or to modify and enforce, a child support order issued in another state shall register that order in this state in the same…

Effect of registration for modification. A tribunal of this state may enforce a child support order of another state registered for purposes of modification, in the same manner as if the order had been issued by a tribunal of this state, but the registered order may be modified o…

Modification of child support order of another state. (a) If W.S. 20-4-193 does not apply, upon petition a tribunal of this state may modify a child support order issued in another state which is registered in this state if, after notice and hearing, the tribunal finds that: (i) …

Recognition of order modified in another state. (a) If a child support order issued by a tribunal of this state is modified by a tribunal of another state which assumed jurisdiction pursuant to the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, a tribunal of this state: (i) May enforce i…

Proceeding to determine parentage. (a) A tribunal of this state authorized to determine parentage of a child may serve as a responding tribunal in a proceeding to determine parentage of a child brought under this act or a law or procedure substantially similar to this act. (b) Re…

Grounds for rendition. (a) For purposes of W.S. 20-4-186 and 20-4-187, "governor" includes an individual performing the functions of the governor or the executive authority of a state covered by this act. (b) The governor of this state may: (i) Demand that the governor of another…

Conditions of rendition. (a) Before making demand that the governor of another state surrender an individual charged criminally in this state with having failed to provide for the support of an obligee, the governor of this state may require a prosecutor of this state to demonstr…

Uniformity of application and construction. In applying and construing this uniform act, consideration shall be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect to its subject matter among states that enact it.