Civil Procedure

RSS Link
Nearly a year after Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge David Borowski found Milwaukee Municipal Court in contempt for failing to record indigency hearings as ordered, the municipal court has agreed to record all hearings for seven years.

The agreement is part of the settlement of a lawsuit brought by a client of Legal Action of Wisconsin, alleging that the municipal court failed to comply with statutory obligations to record certain hearings.

Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Paul R. Van

…
Continue Reading Recording Battle Ends: Milwaukee Municipal Court Settles Lawsuit about Failure to Record Poverty Hearings

Put yourself in the shoes of a Wisconsin family court judge. Your first case of the day is a custody dispute where one parent is appearing pro se—representing themselves without a lawyer. You see self-represented parents nearly every day, and do not expect perfection, just preparation, honesty, and someone who can stay focused on facts instead of emotion.

The pro se party arrives on time and well-organized, but as they begin to unpack their documents you catch a glimpse…
Continue Reading Representing Yourself In Family Court? Read This First

https-www-wisbar-org-newspublications-publishingimages-article%20images-wisconsin-supreme-court-1200x630-jpg

Service Employees International Union Healthcare Wisconsin v. Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission, 2025 WI 29, 6/27/25, on bypass from the court of appeals; case activity

In a unanimous non-criminal appeal, four justices issue a concurrence signaling their willingness to revisit Wisconsin’s method of statutory construction as set forth in Kalal. 

We know our readers may be scratching their heads as to why we are covering this somewhat high-profile non-criminal case involving Act 10. As is sometimes the case, however,

…
Continue Reading SCOW: Four justices signal willingness to revisit precedent governing statutory interpretation

Archive worker

Justice Hagedorn opines in a solo concurrence in Wis. Voter Alliance v. Secord that the common-law legal requirements for a writ of mandamus do not affect public records cases.

When seeking a court order for disclosure of a public record, section 19.37(1)(a) of the Wisconsin Statutes directs litigants to “bring an action for mandamus asking the court to order release of the record.” However, in litigation leading up to the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s review of Wisconsin Voter Alliance v.
Continue Reading Justice Hagedorn Opines that There Are No Procedural Bars to Disclosure Under Public Records Laws

Sean A. Bukowski

The phrase “except as provided” is a fairly innocuous phrase commonly seen in various statutes or if you are young enough to remember, the run-of-the-mill law school textbook on statutory interpretation. It is so common within the Wisconsin statutes that according to Justice Bradley, the phrase renders over 3,000 results in Westlaw.

But if you practice in the world of construction law and defend contractors and their insurers, you may be familiar with the phrase located…
Continue Reading The Statute of Repose and Statute of Limitations in Construction Contract Cases in the Wake of Wascher