The State of Wyoming and people who work for the government are not immune to being held legally responsible if they hurt someone. However, the process of obtaining compensation from the State has its own pitfalls and traps for the unwary. The Attorneys of Vickery & Shepherd have a long history of filing successful cases against the State of Wyoming.
Understanding Tort Claims Against the State of Wyoming
The State is historically protected from civil lawsuits under a legal principle called Sovereign Immunity. Sovereign immunity simply means the state cannot commit a legal wrong and is immune from being sued. However, because that sort of blanket immunity from wrongful actions of government employees is fundamentally unfair, the Wyoming legislature passed a law that created exceptions to governmental immunity. This law is called the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act (“WGCA”). With this law, a formal process by which to hold the State accountable for its actions (or those of its employees) was established.
While the details of the law are much too exhaustive for this particular discussion, there are three main important points to understand about a legal case against the State of Wyoming. First, a formal written claim must be presented to the correct government entity prior to initiating or filing a lawsuit against any entity or employee of the State of Wyoming for any harm it (or its employee(s)) have caused. This claims process is very specific and detailed, and it must be strictly followed to the letter. Failing to do so can result in a court dismissing the lawsuit for failure to follow the claims process. The dismissal will have nothing to do with the merits of the case or whether someone is really hurt.
The second most significant thing to understand about tort claims against the State of Wyoming is that the statute places caps or limits on how much the State of Wyoming can or will actually pay if they are found responsible. The WGCA provides that the maximum liability of a governmental entity is limited to $250,000 for any claimant for any number of claims “arising out of a single transaction or occurrence” or $500,000 “for all claims of all claimants arising out of a single transaction or occurrence.” The liability cap for medical malpractice cases against the State is $1,000,000.00.
Third, and equally important, is that if a lawsuit is filed, it must be on file within one year of filing the claim. Failing to do so can also result in a dismissal of the case.
If you or someone you know is seriously hurt by the State of Wyoming or an employee of the State, contact Vickery & Shepherd for a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss your legal rights.