Opinion ID: 2586510
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Mother's Standing

Text: [¶ 17] Both the State and the GAL contend Mother does not have standing to bring this appeal: Standing is short for standing to sue, which requires a legally protectible and tangible interest at stake in the litigation. Olsten Staffing Servs., Inc. v. D.A. Stinger Servs., Inc., 921 P.2d 596, 599 (Wyo.1996) (quoting Black's Law Dictionary 1405 (6th ed. 1990)). The phrase tangible interest has been equated with the phrase personal stake in the outcome. Goshen Irrigation Dist. v. Wyo. State Bd. of Control, 926 P.2d 943, 947 (Wyo.1996); State ex rel. Bayou Liquors, Inc. v. City of Casper, 906 P.2d 1046, 1048 (Wyo.1995). The person alleging standing must show a perceptible, rather than a speculative harm from the action; a remote possibility of injury is not sufficient to confer standing. Sinclair Oil Corp. v. Wyo. PSC, 2003 WY 22, ¶ 13, 63 P.3d 887, 894-95 (Wyo.2003) Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. v. Gunter, 2007 WY 151, ¶ 11, 167 P.3d 645, 649 (Wyo. 2007). [¶ 18] Insofar as this appeal is concerned, Mother is on the brink of having her parental rights terminated, but that has not been accomplished yet. Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 14-3-402(a)(xvi) (LexisNexis 2009) provides: § 14-3-402. Definitions. . . . . (xvi) Residual parental rights and duties means those rights and duties remaining with the parents after legal custody, guardianship of the person or both have been vested in another person, agency or institution. Residual parental rights and duties include but are not limited to: (A) The duty to support and provide necessities of life; (B) The right to consent to adoption; (C) The right to reasonable visitation unless restricted or prohibited by court order; (D) The right to determine the minor's religious affiliation; and (E) The right to petition on behalf of the minor. We conclude Mother has standing in this appeal.