Dodge County
Circuit Court Rules
(Sixth Judicial District)
The Dodge County Circuit Court Rules are hereby AMENDED, effective
July 1, 2003, to read as follows:
1) Rules of Decorum
Litigants and attorneys shall at all times:
a) Be civil in their dealings with one another and with the public
and conduct all court and court-related proceedings, whether written or
oral, including discovery proceedings, with civility and respect for
each of the participants. In particular, no one should ever crowd the
jury box; lean upon the bench; use the first names of or otherwise
exhibit familiarity with witnesses, jurors, opponents, or the Court; or
appear to engage the Court or other participants in a manner which would
lessen the dignity of the proceedings in the eyes of the public.
b) Abstain from uncivil, abusive, hostile, or obstructive conduct -
including disparaging, demeaning, or sarcastic remarks or comments about
another person.
c) During voir dire, use collective questions and avoid repetitive or
immaterial ones.
d) While in court or while participating in legal proceedings, dress
in a manner showing proper respect for the court, the proceedings, and
the law. In particular, male attorneys should wear neckties and suit or
sport coats; female attorneys should wear appropriate professional
attire.
e) Advise others appearing in court with them that proper conduct and
attire is expected within the courthouse and, where possible, prevent
clients, witnesses, or others from creating disorder or disruption.
f) Be punctual for all scheduled proceedings.
g) Make all reasonable efforts to reach informal agreement on
preliminary and procedural matters, attempt expeditiously to reconcile
differences through negotiation without needless expense or waste of
time, and abstain from pursuing or opposing discovery arbitrarily or for
the purpose of harassment or undue delay.
h) Abstain from knowingly deceiving or misleading another party or
the court.
i) Act in good faith and honor promises and commitments to other
parties and to the court.
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2) Rules of Civil
Procedure
a) Motions Motions properly filed in civil actions
will be scheduled by the calendar clerk and the party filing the motion
shall first obtain the time from the calendar clerk and then notice all
of the necessary parties.
b) Appearing Telephonically Requests to appear in
any proceedings by telephone shall be made within a reasonable amount of
time prior to the event. Anyone who receives permission to appear
telephonically must notify all other parties and/or counsel of their
opportunity to do the same.
c) Continuances No continuances shall be granted
without good cause shown to the court and notice to all other
parties.
d) Five Day Rule Unless otherwise directed by the
court, when submitting to the court any proposed order, findings,
conclusions of law or judgment, a copy shall be submitted to opposing
counsel, with the condition that if no written objection is made to the
court within five business days of receipt, approval is presumed.
e) Interrogatories Unless otherwise provided by
stipulation or court order, no party may serve more than a total of 35
interrogatories in any case upon any other party. For purposes of
computing the number of interrogatories served, each subpart of an
interrogatory shall count as a separate interrogatory, and parties
represented by the same attorney shall be regarded as one party.
f) Jury Instructions and Special Verdicts Unless
otherwise ordered by the court, any request for jury instructions or
special verdict questions shall be filed at least seven days before
trial. Requests for standard instructions shall simply list the
instruction number(s). Requests for non-standard instructions shall set
forth the requested instruction(s) in full and cite the authorities
relied upon.
g) Dismissal for Inaction Whenever it appears to the
court that a plaintiff is not diligently prosecuting the action, the
court may enter an order of dismissal with or without prejudice after 20
days notice to the attorney of record for the plaintiff or to the
plaintiff pro se.
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3) Rules of Criminal
Procedure
a) Jail Call Individuals who are arrested or who
turn themselves in after 10:00 a.m. on any particular day will not make
a court appearance until the next regular jail call following that day,
unless otherwise directed in the discretion of the Circuit Court.
b) Personal Appearances All defendants must appear
personally for the initial appearance, unless the Court has granted
leave in advance. A personal appearance must also be made for any trial,
plea hearing, and/or sentencing.
c) Motions Motions properly filed in criminal cases
shall be scheduled by the calendar clerk and notice shall be mailed to
the respective parties by the calendar clerk. Motions before trial in
misdemeanor cases shall be filed within 10 days after the initial
pre-trial conference unless the court otherwise directs.
d) Motions in Citation Cases Motions in civil
citation cases, including, but not limited to, motions based on defects
in the institution of the proceedings, insufficiency of the citation,
invalidity of the statute or ordinance on which the prosecution is
founded, or the use of illegal means to secure evidence, shall be filed
within 10 days after a plea of not guilty is entered under Wis. Stats.
345.34.
e) Witness Lists Each party shall submit a witness
list to the court and opposing counsel at least seven days before
trial.
f) Jury Instructions Unless otherwise ordered by the
court, any request for jury instructions shall be filed at least seven
days before trial. Requests for standard instructions shall simply list
the instruction number(s). Requests for non-standard instructions shall
set forth the requested instruction(s) in full and cite the authorities
relied upon.
g) Plea & Sentencing Hearings - State's Obligations
If a judgment of conviction is entered or is to be entered at a plea and
sentencing hearing, the State shall be fully prepared to present to the
court the information necessary for proper sentencing, including:
i. at least two copies of any stipulation
ii. a printed copy of defendant's criminal record, if any
iii. any required sentencing guideline sheets
iv. the amount of restitution, if any, and the identity of the
victim(s) entitled to it
v. relevant victims' rights legislation information
h) Plea & Sentencing Hearings - Defense Obligations
If a judgment of conviction is entered or is to be entered at a plea and
sentencing hearing, defense counsel shall be fully prepared to present
to the court the information necessary for proper sentencing,
including:
i. completed guilty plea questionnaire, waiver, and elements of the
offense forms
ii. the number of days of presentence incarceration to be credited,
if any, with all supporting documentation
iii. information regarding the financial ability of the defendant to
pay restitution
i) Presentence Credit Whenever a defendant has been
incarcerated prior to sentencing, complete, competent, and diligent
representation requires defense counsel to present his client's position
regarding sentence credit to the court at or before the time of
sentencing, along with complete documentary evidence therefor. Whenever
this duty has not been performed, counsel will be prepared to
resume/continue the representation for purposes of any subsequent
motions to modify a judgment to add presentence credit.
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4) Rules of Family Court
Procedure
a) Default Trials In order to obtain a default trial
in a divorce case, the parties shall provide to the Family Court
Commissioner's Office the signed stipulation, Bureau of Vital Statistics
form, and Final Financial Disclosure Statement.
b) Scheduling Unless otherwise requested in writing
by a party, the matter will be placed on the pretrial calendar of the
court 120 days after filing.
c) Dismissal for Inaction Unless notice is given or
cause is shown, actions in which no one appears at a scheduled pretrial,
motion hearing, or default trial will be dismissed for failure to
prosecute the action.
d) Guardians ad Litem If required by statute or
necessary to protect the interests of any minor, the attorney for the
plaintiff/petitioner shall file with the court a petition requesting the
appointment of a guardian ad litem, a proposed order, and a consent to
act. The petition shall include the name(s), age(s), and address(es) of
the minor(s). The court may order at the time of the petition that the
parties deposit appropriate funds for payment of the guardian ad
litem.
e) Parental Education Attendance at the Dodge County
Family Court Counseling Parental Education Program:
i. Shall be required when a divorce action is commenced and there is
a minor marital child, or a motion for postjudgment modification of
custody or primary physical placement is filed. Both parents shall
attend within the 120-day waiting period for a new divorce and prior to
mediation of a postjudgment motion for custody or physical placement.
Pleadings in any divorce action involving a minor marital child shall
provide notice of the parties' obligation to attend the program.
ii. Shall be required after an adjudication of paternity, an
admission of paternity subject to confirmation by blood test, or the
filing of a motion for postjudgment modification of custody or primary
physical placement. Both parents shall attend within 90 days of an
adjudication or admission, and prior to the commencement of any
mediation.
iii. May be required for either or both parents after a request for
visitation mediation is filed.
Family Court Counseling may request a waiver of this requirement when
appropriate. Any party who fails to attend the program when required may
be subject to contempt and/or other sanctions including being estopped
from disputing custody or placement.
f) Motions for De Novo Review All motions for de
novo review of a decision of the Family Court Commissioner, pursuant to
Sec. 767.13(6), Stats., must be filed within 30 days of the date of the
decision.
g) Proposed Parenting Plans In every action
involving a minor child, the moving party shall obtain at the time of
filing, from the Dodge County Clerk of Courts, two copies of the
Proposed Parenting Plan form, and shall have one copy served on the
respondent or other party along with the pleading. All parties in the
actions set forth above shall file a completed Proposed Parenting Plan
with the court within 90 days of its receipt.
h) FCC Approval In addition to the other approvals
required by Wis. Stats. §767.251(3), an original and two copies of
the Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Judgment of Divorce shall
be filed with the Dodge County Family Court Commissioner's Office, and
be approved and signed by the Family Court Commissioner, before they are
submitted to the Court for approval and filing. Effective Jan. 1,
2007.
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5) Facsimile Transmission of
Documents to the Court
a) Facsimile documents transmitted to the Court shall be accepted for
filing only at (920) 386-3587 and only if the document does not exceed
15 pages in length.
b) Only documents that do not require a filing fee may be submitted
by facsimile, and there shall be no additional charge for submitting
such documents by facsimile.
c) Papers filed by facsimile transmission after regular business
hours of the Clerk of Court's office are considered filed the next
business day.
d) Facsimile papers are considered filed upon receipt by the Clerk of
Court and are the official record of the Court and may not be
substituted. The transmitting party shall send no additional copies of
the facsimile transmission. The Clerk of Court shall discard any
duplicate papers subsequently received. Parties who have transmitted
documents by facsimile to the Court shall retain in their own files any
"original" document that was used for the facsimile transmission. In the
event the authenticity of the faxed document is challenged, the party
who faxed the document to the Court shall have the burden to show
authenticity.
e) The party transmitting the facsimile document is solely
responsible for insuring its timely and complete receipt. The Court and
Clerk of Court are not responsible for errors or failures in
transmission that result in missing or illegible documents or periods
when the Court's facsimile machine is not operational for any
reason.
f) Any document required to be served on others which is faxed to the
Court shall be faxed or served at the same time to all other
parties.
g) A Judge assigned to a particular matter may authorize, in advance,
the filing of particular documents in that case that do not conform to
these rules if good cause is shown and they are in conformance with SCR
801.16. Parties submitting facsimiles exceeding 15 pages in length must
certify that the assigned Judge or Court Commissioner has approved the
facsimile transmission.
6) Sanctions Violations
of these Rules may be sanctioned under Sec. 805.03,
Wis. Stats.
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