Wyoming Statutes
Wyo. Stat. § 26-15-129 (2026)
Exemption of proceeds; life insurance.
✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases:
SyfertCases citing this section
WY-LEGwyoleg.gov
JustiaTitle on Justia
CornellLII Search
CasesGoogle Scholar
(a) If a policy of insurance is executed by any person on
his own life or on another life, in favor of a person other than
himself, or except in cases of transfer with intent to defraud
creditors, if a policy of life insurance is assigned or in any
way made payable to that person, the lawful beneficiary or
assignee thereof, other than the insured or the person executing
insurance or executors or administrators of the insured or the
person executing the insurance, are entitled to its proceeds,
including death benefits, cash surrender and loan values,
premiums waived and dividends, whether used in reduction of
premiums or otherwise, excepting only where the debtor,
subsequent to issuance of the policy, has actually elected to
receive the dividends in cash, against the creditors and
representatives of the insured and of the person executing the
policy, and are not liable to be applied by any legal or
equitable process to pay any debt or liability of the insured
individual or his beneficiary or of any other person having a
right under the policy, whether or not:
(i) The right to change the beneficiary is reserved
or permitted; and
(ii) The policy is made payable to the person whose
life is insured if the beneficiary or assignee predeceases that
person, and the proceeds are exempt from all liability for any
debt of the beneficiary existing at the time the policy is made
available for his use.
(b) However, subject to the statute of limitations, the
amount of any premiums paid for insurance with intent to defraud
creditors, with interest thereon, shall inure to their benefit
from the policy proceeds; but the insurer issuing the policy is
discharged of all liability thereon by payment of its proceeds
in accordance with its terms, unless before payment the insurer
receives written notice at its home office, by or in behalf of a
creditor of:
(i) A claim to recover for transfer made or premiums
paid with intent to defraud creditors;
(ii) The amount claimed along with facts as will
assist the insurer to ascertain the particular policy.
(c) For the purposes of subsections (a) and (b) of this
section, a policy is payable to a person other than the insured
if and to the extent that a facility-of-payment clause or
similar clause in the policy permits the insurer to discharge
its obligation after the death of the individual insured by
paying the death benefits to a person as permitted by the
clause.Notes of Decisions
Cited in 5
cases, 1989–2003 · leading case: In Re Wenande, 107 B.R. 770 (Bankr. D. Wyo. 1989).
In Re Wenande, 107 B.R. 770 (Bankr. D. Wyo. 1989). “§ 1-17-411 50% ( ) Life Insurance Benefits W.S. § 26-15-129 100% ( ) Disability Ins.”
Royal v. Pancratz (In Re Pancratz), 175 B.R. 85 (D. Wyo. 1994). “V13069965, and its cash value under Wyo.Stat. § 26-15-129. The bankruptcy court determined further that the debtors could not claim an exemption for the 1986 Nissan Maxima under Wyo.”
Vigil v. Zubrod (In Re Vigil), 74 F. App'x 19 (10th Cir. 2003). “This appeal presents a purely legal question: whether under Wyoming’s exemption statute, Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 26-15-129 , a debtor in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding can exempt the cash value of a life insurance policy from the bankruptcy estate.”
Michaels v. Zubrod (In Re Michaels), 282 B.R. 234 (10th Cir. BAP 2002). “Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 26-15-129 (a)(i)-(ii). The italicized portions of the foregoing were added by an amendment to the statute that became effective July 1, 2001.”
In Re Vigil, 272 B.R. 306 (Bankr. D. Wyo. 2002). “The debtors claim the cash value exempt pursuant to Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 26-15-129 (a) (LexisNexis 2001).”
— Wyo. Stat. § 26-15-129(a) — 1 case
Michaels v. Zubrod (In Re Michaels), 282 B.R. 234 (10th Cir. BAP 2002). “Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 26-15-129 (a)(i)-(ii). The italicized portions of the foregoing were added by an amendment to the statute that became effective July 1, 2001.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.