2012 Wyoming Statutes
TITLE 1 - CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
CHAPTER 22 - ADOPTION
1-22-104. Petition for adoption of minor; by whom filed; requisites; confidential nature; inspection; separate journal to be kept.

(a) Adoption proceedings shall be commenced by a petition filed in district court. The district court may transfer jurisdiction of a petition to adopt a child to the juvenile court if the child proposed for adoption in the petition is under the prior and continuing jurisdiction of the juvenile court.

(b) A petition may be filed by any single adult or jointly by a husband and wife who maintain their home together, or by either the husband or wife if the other spouse is a parent of the child.

(c) The following documents shall be filed with every petition to adopt a child:

(i) The appropriate consent to adoption pursuant to W.S. 1-22-109;

(ii) Any relinquishments as provided by W.S. 1-22-109 necessary to show the court that the person or agency legally authorized to have custody and control of the child prior to the adoption, has duly relinquished the child to the petitioners for adoption;

(iii) A report of the medical examination of the child made by a licensed Wyoming physician within thirty (30) days immediately preceding the filing of the petition to adopt. The report shall be made on forms provided by the department of family services. A medical report shall not be required when a parent of the child joins in the petition to adopt or when the child resided with the adoptive parents for more than six (6) months prior to filing the petition;

(iv) An affidavit from each petitioner setting forth:

(A) Any previous or current diagnosed psychiatric disorders of the petitioner;

(B) All felony convictions of the petitioner within the preceding ten (10) years;

(C) All misdemeanor convictions of the petitioner within the preceding five (5) years;

(D) The current parole or probation status of the petitioner, if any.

(v) An affidavit stating the name or names of persons awarded visitation rights to the child under W.S. 20-7-101 or 20-7-102 or an affidavit stating that no visitation rights under W.S. 20-7-101 or 20-7-102 have been awarded in regard to the child.

(d) The petition and documents filed pursuant to this section, and the interlocutory decree, if entered, and the final decree of adoption shall constitute a confidential file and shall be available for inspection only to the judge, or, by order of court, to the parties to the proceedings or their attorneys. Upon the entry of the final decree of adoption, all records in the proceedings shall be sealed and may be available for inspection only by order of court for good cause shown. The clerk of court shall maintain a separate journal for adoption proceedings to be confidential and available for inspection only by order of the court for good cause shown. The court may order inspection of all or part of the confidential file in adoption proceedings only if it appears to the court that the welfare and best interests of the child will be served by the inspection.

(e) The court may order inspection of all or any part of the confidential file upon a proper motion made pursuant to W.S. 1-22-203(b). Any order permitting inspection under this subsection shall preserve the anonymity of the natural parents, the adoptive parents and the child and shall provide that the inspection is subject to the provisions of W.S. 1-22-203. Documents filed pursuant to W.S. 1-22-203(b) or this subsection shall become part of the confidential file.

(f) For purposes of this section, "convicted" includes pleas of guilty, nolo contendere, verdicts of guilty upon which a judgment of conviction may be rendered and dispositions pursuant to W.S. 7-13-301 and 35-7-1037.