ARTICLE 3 - LIEN OF JUDGMENT AND ENFORCEMENT BY EXECUTION

Except for property exempt by law, all property of the judgment debtor, both real and personal or any legal or equitable interest therein including any interest of the judgment debtor in mortgaged property or property being sold under an executory land contract, is subject to execution.

The lands and tenements within the county in which judgment is entered are bound for the satisfaction thereof from the day the judgment is filed with the county clerk. Whenever a judgment is required to be filed with the county clerk, it shall be recorded in the real estate records. Goods and chattels of the debtor are bound from the time they are seized in execution.

A judgment of the supreme court for money binds the lands and tenements of the debtor within the county in which the suit originated from the day the judgment is filed with the county clerk. Whenever a judgment is required to be filed with the county clerk, it shall be recorded in the real estate records. Goods and chattels of the debtor are bound from the time they are seized in execution. The lien of a judgment of the district court which is appealed to the supreme court shall not be divested or vacated, but shall continue until the final determination of the action in the supreme court.

The judgment creditor in any judgment rendered by any district court in this state, or in any judgment rendered in a circuit court of this state and filed in the judgment record of the district court, may file a transcript of the judgment record of the district court with the clerk of the district court and the county clerk in any other counties within this state where the judgment debtor owns real estate. The judgment is a lien upon all real estate of the judgment debtor in any county in which the transcript is filed with the clerk of district court and the county clerk from the date of filing with the county clerk. The clerk of the district court of any county in which the transcript is filed shall enter the judgment upon the judgment records of the court in the same manner as judgments are rendered in that court.

(a) Judgments and decrees entered in any United States district court or circuit court held within this state are a lien against the lands and tenements of the person against whom the judgment or decree is rendered, situated within the county where the judgment or decree is entered, from the day the judgment is filed with the county clerk.

(b) The judgment creditor in any judgment or decree rendered in any United States district court within this state may file a transcript of the judgment record in the office of the clerk of any Wyoming district court and the county clerk in any counties in the state of Wyoming where the judgment debtor owns real estate.

(c) The clerk of the district court of any county in which the transcript is filed shall enter the judgment upon the judgment records of the court in the same manner as judgments rendered in that court.

(d) The judgment or decree is a lien upon all the real estate of the judgment debtor in the county or counties where the transcript is filed with the clerk of district court and the county clerk from the date of filing with the county clerk.

(a) The party in whose favor a judgment is rendered by a circuit court if the judgment is not appealed or stayed, may file with the clerk of the district court and the county clerk of the county in which the judgment was rendered a transcript thereof, certifying therein the amount paid thereon, if any. The clerk of court shall enter the case on the execution docket, together with the amount of the judgment and the time of filing the transcript with the county clerk. If within ten (10) days after the judgment was rendered, the judgment debtor pays the same or gives bond for stay of execution, the justice shall immediately certify that fact to the clerk of the district court and the county clerk. The district court clerk shall enter a memorandum thereof upon the docket. The cost of the transcript, the filing, recording and the entry on the docket shall be paid by the party who files and records the transcript and not be taxed to the other party.

(b) The judgment shall be a lien on the real estate of the judgment debtor within the county from the day the transcript is filed with the county clerk provided the transcript has also been filed previously or that same day with the clerk of district court.

(c) Execution may be issued on the judgment at any time after filing the transcript as if the judgment had been rendered in the district court.

If execution on a judgment rendered in any court of record in this state or a transcript of which has been filed as provided in W.S. 1-17-306(a) is not issued within five (5) years from date of the judgment or if five (5) years intervene between the date the last execution issued on the judgment and the time of issuing another execution thereon, the judgment is dormant and ceases to operate as a lien on the estate of the judgment debtor.

(a) The writ of execution against the property of the judgment debtor issuing from any court of record shall command the officer to whom it is directed that he shall collect the money specified in the writ from the real and personal property of the debtor.

(b) An execution issued on a judgment rendered against a partnership by its firm name shall operate only on the partnership property.

The officer shall endorse on every writ of execution the time when he received it. When two (2) or more writs of execution against the same debtor are delivered to the officer on the same day, no preference shall be given to either of the writs. If a sufficient sum of money is not made to satisfy all executions, the amount made shall be distributed to the several creditors in proportion to the amount of their respective demands. In all other cases the writ of execution first delivered to the officer shall be first satisfied. This section shall not affect any preferable lien which a judgment on execution issued has on the lands of the judgment debtor.

The officer to whom a writ of execution is delivered shall proceed immediately to levy the writ upon the real and personal property of the debtor.

When an officer levies an execution upon any goods and chattels which afterwards remain unsold for any reasonable cause, the officer may for his own security, take a bond from the defendant, with security he deems sufficient to the effect that the property shall be delivered to the officer holding the execution for the sale of same at the time and place appointed by the officer, either by notice given in writing to the defendant in execution or by advertisement printed in a newspaper published in the county, naming the day and place of sale. If the defendant fails to deliver the goods and chattels at the time and place mentioned in the notice or to pay to the officer holding the execution the full value of the goods and chattels or the amount of the debt and costs, the bond shall be considered broken and may be proceeded on as in other cases.

Unless a private sale is ordered as provided in W.S. 1-17-314, the officer who levies execution upon goods and chattels, shall cause public notice to be given of the time and place of sale at least ten (10) days before the day of sale. The notice shall be given by advertisement in a newspaper published in the county or, if no newspaper is published therein, then in a newspaper of general circulation in the county.

When goods and chattels levied upon by execution cannot be sold for want of bidders or want of time, the officer who makes the return shall annex to the execution a true inventory of the goods and chattels remaining unsold. The plaintiff in execution may have another execution issued, directing the sale of the property levied upon, but the goods and chattels shall not be sold unless the time and place of sale is advertised as directed in W.S. 1-17-312.

The court from which an execution or order of sale issues, on application of either party with due notice to the adverse party and for good cause, may order the officer holding the process to sell the goods and chattels at private sale for cash, specifying the time during which the sale will continue but not extending beyond the return day of the process. Before a private sale is made, the court shall order the personal property appraised by three (3) disinterested persons or a qualified appraiser and the property shall not be sold for less than two-thirds (2/3) of the appraised value. Except when a private sale is ordered for good cause, all sales of goods and chattels shall be at public auction.

When a writ is issued directing the sale of property previously taken in execution, the officer who issues the writ, if requested, shall add thereto a command to the officer to whom the writ is directed that if the unsold property remaining in his hands is insufficient to satisfy the judgment, he shall levy the same upon lands and tenements or goods and chattels of the judgment debtor, as the law permits, sufficient to satisfy the debt.

(a) The officer who levies execution upon real property shall designate a qualified appraiser or three (3) disinterested property owners who are residents of the county where the lands taken in execution are situate and administer to the appraiser or to the property owners an oath to view and impartially appraise the value of the property levied upon or any interest of the judgment debtor. The appraiser or the property owners shall return to the officer as soon as possible a signed estimate of the appraised value.

(b) When the officer receives the return, he shall promptly deposit a copy with the clerk of the court from which the writ issued and immediately advertise and sell the real estate or the judgment debtor's interest as provided by law.

(c) If upon the return it appears that two-thirds (2/3) of the appraised value of the judgment debtor's interest in the real estate levied upon is sufficient to satisfy the execution with costs, the judgment on which the execution is issued shall not operate as a lien on the residue of the debtor's estate to the prejudice of any other judgment creditor. Except as expressly authorized by law, no real estate shall be sold for less than two-thirds (2/3) of the appraised value of the judgment debtor's interest in the property.

(d) All lands the property of persons indebted to the state for any debt or taxes, except for loans authorized by the legislature, shall be sold without appraisal notwithstanding any other provision of law.

The property of any state, county or municipal officer levied on for or on account of any money collected or received by him in his official capacity may be sold without valuation.

The sheriff shall endorse his actions on the writ. Immediately upon return of the writ, the clerk shall record at length in the execution docket or other docket provided for the purpose all such endorsements and the record shall be a part of the court record.

If the sheriff collects any part of a judgment by virtue of an execution without the sale of real estate, he shall pay the same to the judgment creditor or his attorney. If the execution is fully satisfied, he shall return it within three (3) days after he has collected the money.

Upon notice and motion of the officer who makes the sale or of an interested party, the court from which any execution or order of sale issues shall punish as for contempt any purchaser of real property who willfully fails to pay the purchase money.

If upon return of any writ of execution for the satisfaction of which lands and tenements have been sold, it is found by the court that the sale was made in all respects in conformity with the code of civil procedure [this title], the clerk shall be directed to make an entry in the journal that the court is satisfied with the legality of the sale and that the officer, upon expiration of the period of redemption, shall make a deed to the purchaser for the lands and tenements. The officer may retain the purchase money until the court examines his proceedings. He shall then pay the money to the persons entitled as the court may order.

A master commissioner, upon order by the court, may convey real property when a party to a proceeding has been ordered to convey the property to another and fails or refuses to obey the order. The master commissioner may also execute a conveyance when specific real property is sold by him under an order or judgment of the court.

A master commissioner or special master who sells real property has the same power to administer oaths as the sheriff. A sheriff may act as a master commissioner and, upon notice and for reasonable compensation to be paid by the master commissioner out of his fees, may attend and make sale for any commissioner who, by reason of sickness is unable to attend. Sales made by a master shall conform in all respects to the laws regulating sales of lands upon execution.

The deed is prima facie evidence of the legality and regularity of the sale and the entire estate and interest of the person whose property the officer sells and conveys shall thereby rest in the purchaser, whether that interest existed at the time the property became liable to satisfy the judgment, or was acquired subsequently.

The officer who makes a levy or holds an order of sale may demand of the plaintiff the fees of the printer for publishing the notice and the officer is not required to make publication until the fees are paid.

All sales of lands or tenements under execution or order of sale shall be held at the courthouse in the county in which the lands and tenements are situated, unless otherwise ordered by the court. Purchases of real or personal property by the officer making sale or by an appraiser of the property are void.

If lands and tenements levied on or ordered sold are not sold upon one (1) execution, other executions may be issued.

(a) When two (2) or more executions having different preferences are to be satisfied by levying upon real estate, either judgment creditor may require the officer to make a separate levy for his execution. The officer levying the executions may choose such part of the debtor's real property as is sufficient, at two-thirds (2/3) of the appraised value of the judgment debtor's interest, to satisfy the executions.

(b) When two (2) or more executions having no preference as to each other are to be satisfied by levying upon real property, either judgment creditor may require the officer to levy upon separate parcels if the appraisers determine that the property may be divided without material injury.

(c) If two-thirds (2/3) of the appraised value of the judgment debtor's interest in real property is not sufficient to satisfy all the executions chargeable against it, that part of the property shall be levied on to satisfy each execution as will bear the same proportion in value to the whole as the amount due on the execution bears to the amount of all the executions chargeable thereon, as near as may be, according to the appraised value of the judgment debtor's interest in each separate parcel.

If the term of the officer who makes a sale of any lands and tenements expires, or he is unable from any cause to make a certificate of sale or a deed of conveyance of the property sold, any successor of the officer on receiving a certificate from the court from which execution issued setting forth that sufficient proof has been made that the sale was fairly and legally made, and on tender or proof of payment of the purchase money, may execute to the purchaser or his legal representatives a certificate of sale or a deed of conveyance of the lands and tenements sold. The certificate or deed shall be as valid in law as if the officer who made the sale had executed it.

If there remains in the hands of the officer after an execution sale more money than necessary to satisfy the writ of execution with interest and costs, the officer shall pay the balance to the defendant in execution or his legal representatives.

If a judgment in satisfaction of which lands or tenements are sold is thereafter reversed, the reversal shall not affect the title of the purchaser, but the judgment creditor shall make restitution of the money received from the sale with lawful interest from the day of sale.

(a) If the title of the purchaser is invalid by reason of a procedural defect in the sale of property on execution, the purchaser is subrogated to the right of the creditor against the debtor to the extent of the money paid and applied to the debtor's benefit, and shall have a lien therefor on the property sold as against all persons except bona fide purchasers without notice. The creditor is not required to refund the purchase money by reason of the invalidity of any such sale.

(b) This section applies to all sales by order of court, sales by executors, administrators, guardians and assignees and to all sales for taxes.

When a plaintiff in execution, in good faith, has had a levy of execution and sale of property not subject thereto, with the proceeds applied on his judgment, and a recovery therefor has been had against him by the owner of the property, the plaintiff, having paid the amount so recovered, on motion and notice to the judgment defendant, in the court having control of the judgment, may have the satisfaction made from the sale on execution vacated and is entitled to collect the judgment.

When an officer levies execution in good faith, upon property not subject thereto, sells the property and applies the proceeds in satisfaction of the judgment, and a recovery is had against him for its value, upon payment of the recovery and on motion and notice to the execution defendant in the court having control of the judgment, the officer may have the satisfaction of the judgment vacated and execution issued for his use the same as if the levy and sale had not been made.

When a defendant in a judgment or his surety mistakenly directs an execution issued on the judgment to be levied on property not liable to execution, and thereby wholly or partially satisfies the judgment, he may be compelled to pay the owner of the property therefor. Thereafter, he shall have the same rights against any codefendant in the judgment and against any cosurety or principal in respect of the debts on which the judgment is founded as though the satisfaction had been made out of the property of the defendant or surety directing the levy.

A judgment on which execution is not levied before the expiration of one (1) year after its rendition shall not operate as a lien on the estate of a debtor. When judgment is rendered in the district or supreme court and a special mandate is awarded to the district court to carry the same into execution, the lien of the judgment creditor shall continue for one (1) year after the mandate is filed with the county clerk. The special mandate shall be entered on the journal of the district court before being filed with the county clerk. In computing the period of one (1) year, the time covered by an appeal of the case, by an injunction against the execution, by a vacancy in the office of sheriff or by the inability of the officer, shall be excluded.

When real estate taken on execution is appraised and is twice advertised and offered for sale but remains unsold for lack of bidders, the court from which the execution issued on motion of the plaintiff or defendant shall set aside the appraisement and order a new appraisement to be made, or set aside the levy and appraisement and award a new execution to issue. When the real estate or any part thereof has been three (3) times appraised and thereafter twice advertised and offered for sale, and remains unsold for lack of bidders, the court may direct the amount for which the property shall be sold.

When premises are ordered to be sold and having been twice advertised and offered for sale remain unsold for lack of bidders, on motion of the plaintiff or defendant the court from which the order of sale issued shall order a new appraisement, and may also order that the land be sold on time with one-third (1/3) cash in hand, one-third (1/3) in nine (9) months from the day of sale, and the remaining one-third (1/3) in eighteen (18) months from the day of sale. Deferred payments shall draw interest and be secured by a mortgage on the premises.

The officer to whom a writ of execution is directed shall return the writ to the court within sixty (60) days from the date thereof.

Each person appraising real estate under W.S. 1-17-301 through 1-17-345 shall receive a reasonable fee to be collected on the execution.

When execution is issued to the sheriff of another county, and the sheriff, having discharged all the duties required of him by law, returns the execution by mail to the clerk of the court who issued it soon enough to have reached the office where it was issued within the time prescribed by law, he is not liable for any penalty if it does not reach the office in time.

A sheriff shall not forward by mail any money made on execution unless he is specially instructed to do so by the plaintiff, his agent or attorney.

The clerk of the district court shall enter in the execution docket the full names of the parties to the action in which an execution is issued, the number of the action in the appearance docket, the number of the execution, the date of its issue, the amount of the judgment, the costs due each person or officer, the time when the judgment was rendered, the date of the return and the return recorded in full.

The clerk shall keep an index to the execution docket showing in separate columns the names of all parties against whom and in whose favor an execution has been issued, the number of the execution and the number of the action upon the appearance docket.