Shriners Hospitals for Children, In Its Capacity as Beneficiary of the Alfred J. and Pegge A. Cooksley Trust v. First Northern Bank of Wyoming, In Its Capacity as Trustee of the Alfred J. and Pegge A. Cooksley Trust, 373 P.3d 392

Jack and Pegge Cooksley created a revocable trust (the Cooksley Trust) funding a 1,620‑acre ranch and other assets; settlors appointed First Northern Bank as successor trustee and set a termination/distribution date in the instrument amendments (final date: year 2100).
Trust directed income (semiannually) to Shriners Hospitals (85%) and Kalif Children’s Travel Fund (15%) after the settlors’ deaths; the Trust expressly prioritized maintaining the ranch and authorized sale only if continued ownership became impractical or imprudent.
After Pegge’s 2007 death and Jack’s 2011 death, Shriners challenged the Trust as violating the rule against perpetuities, sought early termination and immediate distribution, and later sued the Bank for breach of fiduciary duty and removal.
First Northern sought a court amendment re: perpetuities; the court held the rule did not apply and later, after bench trial, found retention of the ranch a material (dominant) trust purpose, denied Shriners’ termination and breach claims, and refused to remove the Bank.
The district court found Shriners acted in bad faith and awarded the Bank $48,343.74 in attorney fees (excluding insurer fees); the Wyoming Supreme Court affirmed and authorized the Bank to seek appellate fees.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Shriners)	Defendant's Argument (Bank)	Held
1. Rule against perpetuities	Trust’s 2100 termination violates Wyo. statutory perpetuities rule	Beneficiaries’ remainder interests vested at settlor’s death; perpetuities inapplicable	Court: Perpetuities does not apply because beneficiaries’ interests vested on settlor’s death — affirmed
2. Termination of trust under UTC §411/§413	Continued trust is uneconomical; none or no material purpose remains so it should terminate	Retention of ranch until 2100 is a material (dominant) purpose; termination would defeat settlor’s intent	Court: Retention of ranch is a material purpose; termination denied
3. Breach of fiduciary duty / failure to diversify	Bank refused to sell ranch, failed to diversify, mishandled lease and ignored red flags	Bank acted to implement settlor’s terms, sought legal advice, clarified lease, and administered trust prudently	Court: No breach—Bank reasonably followed settlor’s express terms and duties to carry out trust
4. Attorney fees and fee allocation	Fees should not be charged to Shriners or should be paid from trust; some fees (insurer/expert) improper	Justice and equity support awarding reasonable fees to prevailing trustee; insurer-paid fees not recoverable from Shriners	Court: Award of $48,343.74 to Bank (trial counsel fees) against Shriners affirmed; insurer fees denied; Bank may seek appellate fees

Williams v. Watt, 668 P.2d 620 (Wyo. 1983) (distinguishing vested versus contingent interests for perpetuities analysis)
Horse Creek Conservation Dist. v. State ex rel. Wyo. AG, 221 P.3d 306 (Wyo. 2009) (rule against perpetuities and vested interest principles)
American Nat’l Bank v. Miller, 899 P.2d 1337 (Wyo. 1995) (beneficiaries cannot compel termination when continuance is necessary to a material purpose)
Forbes v. Forbes, 341 P.3d 1041 (Wyo. 2015) (standards for trustee removal and trustee duties of loyalty/administration)