34-24-121 to every person, including any person acquiring the

34-24-121 to every person, including any person acquiring the original certificate or the duplicate certificate issued to the administrator, for any losses or damages resulting to any person by the issuance and delivery of the duplicate certificate or other evidence of ownership to the administrator.

(c) When a certificate or other evidence of ownership, or a bond or other debt security, registered in the name of a person is delivered to the administrator pursuant to any provision of this act and is presented by the administrator to the issuer thereof of [or] its agent, the issuer shall transfer and register it in the name of the Wyoming state treasurer, and a new certificate or security, so registered, shall be delivered to the administrator. The issuer and its transfer agent, registrar or other person acting on behalf of the issuer in executing and delivering the certificate or security shall be fully and automatically relieved from any liability to any person in accordance with W.S. 34-24-121 for any loss or damage caused by the transfer, issuance and delivery of the certificate or security to the administrator.

34-24-121. Custody by state; holder relieved from liability; reimbursement of holder paying claim; reclaiming for owner; defense of holder; payment of safe deposit box or repository charges.

(a) Upon the payment or delivery of property to the administrator, the state assumes custody and responsibility for the safekeeping of the property. A person who pays or delivers property to the administrator in good faith is relieved of all liability to the extent of the value of the property paid or delivered for any claim then existing or which thereafter may arise or be made in respect to the property. The person who pays or delivers in this manner shall not thereafter be liable for interest.

(b) A holder who has paid money to the administrator pursuant to this act may make payment to any person appearing to the holder to be entitled to payment and, upon filing proof of payment and proof that the payee was entitled thereto, the administrator shall promptly reimburse the holder for the payment without imposing any fee or other charge. If reimbursement is sought for a payment made on a negotiable instrument, including a traveler's check or money order, the holder must be reimbursed under this subsection upon filing proof that the instrument was duly presented and that payment was made to a person who appeared to the holder to be entitled to payment. The holder shall be reimbursed for payment made under this subsection even if the payment was made to a person whose claim was barred under W.S. 34-24-130(a).

(c) A holder who has delivered property (including a certificate of any interest in a business association) other than money to the administrator pursuant to this act may reclaim the property if still in the possession of the administrator, without paying any fee or other charge, upon filing proof that the owner has claimed the property from the holder.

(d) The administrator may accept the holder's affidavit as sufficient proof of the facts that entitle the holder to recover money and property under this section.

(e) If the holder pays or delivers property to the administrator in good faith and thereafter another person claims the property from the holder or another state claims the money or property under its laws relating to escheat or abandoned or unclaimed property, the administrator, upon written notice of the claim, shall defend the holder against the claim and indemnify the holder against any liability on the claim.

(f) For the purposes of this section, "good faith" means that:

(i) Payment or delivery was made in a reasonable attempt to comply with this act;

(ii) The person delivering the property was not a fiduciary then in breach of trust in respect to the property and had a reasonable basis for believing, based on the facts then known to that person, that the property was abandoned for the purposes of this act; and

(iii) There is no showing that the records pursuant to which the delivery was made did not meet reasonable commercial standards of practice in the industry.

(g) Property removed from a safe deposit box or other safekeeping repository is received by the administrator subject to the holder's right under this subsection to be reimbursed for the actual cost of the opening and to any valid lien or contract providing for the holder to be reimbursed for unpaid rent, storage, or any other charges that are reasonable and related.

34-24-122. Amount recoverable by owner.

Whenever property is paid or delivered to the administrator under this act, the owner is entitled to receive from the administrator the principal amount turned over to the state.

34-24-123. Public sale of abandoned property.

(a) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, the administrator, within three (3) years after the receipt of abandoned property, shall sell it to the highest bidder at public sale in whatever city in the state affords in the judgment of the administrator the most favorable market for the property involved. The administrator may decline the highest bid and reoffer the property for sale if in the judgment of the administrator the bid is insufficient. If in the judgment of the administrator the probable cost of sale exceeds the value of the property, it need not be offered for sale. Any sale held under this section shall be preceded by a single publication of notice, at least three (3) weeks in advance of sale, in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the property is to be sold.

(b) Securities listed on an established stock exchange shall be sold at prices prevailing at the time of sale on the exchange. Other securities may be sold over the counter at prices prevailing at the time of sale or by any other method the administrator considers advisable.

(c) Unless the administrator considers it to be in the best interest of the state to do otherwise, all securities, other than those deemed abandoned under W.S. 34-24-111, delivered to the administrator shall be held for at least one (1) year before he may sell them.

(d) Unless the administrator considers it to be in the best interest of the state to do otherwise, all securities deemed abandoned under W.S. 34-24-111 and delivered to the administrator shall be held for at least three (3) years before the administrator may sell them. If the administrator sells any securities delivered pursuant to W.S. 34-24-111 before the expiration of the three (3) year period, any person making a claim pursuant to this act before the end of the three (3) year period is entitled to either the proceeds of the sale of the securities or the market value of the securities at the time the claim is made, whichever amount is greater. A person making a claim under this act after the expiration of this period is entitled to receive either the securities delivered to the administrator by the holder, if they still remain in the hands of the administrator, or the proceeds received from sale, but no person has any claim under this act against the state, the holder, any transfer agent, registrar or other person acting for or on behalf of a holder for any appreciation in the value of the property occurring after delivery by the holder to the administrator.

(e) The purchaser of property at any sale conducted by the administrator pursuant to this act takes the property free of all claims of the owner or previous holder thereof and of all persons claiming through or under them. The administrator shall execute all documents necessary to complete the transfer of ownership.

34-24-124. Deposit of funds; investment of funds; loans; immunity from liability.  (a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, the administrator shall promptly deposit in the unclaimed property account all funds received under this act, including the proceeds from the sale of abandoned property under W.S. 34-24- 123. Before making the deposit, the administrator shall record the name and last known address of each person appearing from the holders' reports to be entitled to the property and the name and last known address of each insured person or annuitant and beneficiary and with respect to each policy or contract listed in the report of an insurance company its number, the name of the company and the amount due. The claimant's name and last known address shall be available for public inspection at all reasonable business hours.

(b) The administrator or his designee shall invest the funds in the unclaimed property account created by subsection (a) of this section as authorized by law in a manner to obtain the highest net return possible consistent with the purposes of this act. Investment earnings from the account shall be deposited into the unclaimed property investment earnings account. There is continuously appropriated to the administrator from the unclaimed property investment earnings account an amount equal to the administrator's expenses in carrying out this act. Annually after the end of each fiscal year the administrator shall deposit in the general fund investment earnings earned on the unclaimed property account which exceed the amount necessary to administer this act for the fiscal year and which exceeds the amount equal to one hundred percent (100%) of the immediately prior biennium's appropriation for the unclaimed property division.

(c) An action or proceeding shall not be commenced against the state, the administrator or his designee because of an act of the administrator under this section involving the investment of unclaimed property funds.

34-24-125. Filing of claim with administrator.

(a) A person, excluding another state, claiming an interest in any property paid or delivered to the administrator may file with the administrator a claim on a form prescribed by the administrator and verified by the claimant.

(b) The administrator shall consider each claim within ninety (90) days after it is filed and give written notice to the claimant if the claim is denied in whole or in part. The notice may be given by mailing it to the last address, if any, stated in the claim as the address to which notices are to be sent. If no address for notices is stated in the claim, the notice may be mailed to the last address, if any, of the claimant as stated in the claim. No notice of denial need be given if the claim fails to state either the last address to which notices are to be sent or the address of the claimant.

(c) If a claim is allowed, the administrator shall pay over to the claimant the monies received from the holder, or the net proceeds if property has been sold by the administrator, together with any additional amount required by W.S. 34-24-122. If the claim is for property deemed abandoned under W.S.