News & Pubs Archive

In a tragic case involving a young girl who drowned at summer camp, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled that the City of New Berlin does not have a governmental immunity defense to a negligence claim because an exception applies.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has upheld a conviction for operating while intoxicated (OWI), second offense, even though a circuit court ordered expunction of the defendant’s first OWI conviction, five years earlier, from his court record.

Two neurosurgeons will head back to circuit court to determine whether their contractual dispute must go to arbitration, now that the Wisconsin Supreme Court has reversed an appeals court decision that the dispute must be arbitrated

The Wisconsin Supreme Court added four new cases to its docket, all criminal-related cases. One involves jury instructions, another concerns involuntary medication. The two others relate to plea withdrawals and the right to counsel.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled (6-1) that police violated a defendant’s constitutional rights by entering her apartment without valid consent and without any other justified reason to enter without securing a warrant first.

The 2019 State Bar of Wisconsin officer candidates represent differing practice areas and backgrounds – and all are excellent leaders, says State Bar of Wisconsin President-elect Jill Kastner.

The State Bar of Wisconsin's policy-making body also adopted a diversity and inclusion action plan and announced a slate of officer candidates for the 2019 elections.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court may decide whether a police officer unlawfully extended a legal traffic stop for moving and seatbelt violations when he ordered the driver to exit the vehicle to conduct a search, which uncovered drugs.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has unanimously upheld a search warrant for the placement of a global positioning system (GPS) tracking device on a car, even though the warrant was not executed within five days under a state statute.

Courthouse News Service, which covers state and federal courts nationwide, recently lost a fight to compel a circuit court clerk in Illinois to release newly filed complaints to reporters the moment they are received by the clerk’s office.

An arbitrator awarded $10 million in damages to 174 employees in a class arbitration action for wage and hour violations originating in Wisconsin. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit now says that award must be revisited.

A toll-free legal hotline is available to victims of Wisconsin’s recently declared federal disaster area in Crawford, Dane, Juneau, La Crosse, Marquette, Monroe, Richland, Sauk and Vernon counties.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court recently approved a petition to modify Wisconsin’s default judgment rule, which currently allows a plaintiff to move for a default judgment against a defendant who fails to timely answer a complaint.

Addressing the low hourly rate paid to private bar attorneys who take public defender cases is a priority for Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Patience Roggensack, who delivered the State of the Judiciary Address today.

In a unanimous decision, the Wisconsin Supreme Court recently applied a “cause theory” to limit coverage for damages that property owners sustained in the 2013 “Germann Road Fire,” a forest fire that burned more than 7,300 acres.

There has been more change in the legal profession in the last 15 years than the previous 50 years, according to some industry experts. Embrace change and innovation. Adapt or die. Those are clear messages from the 2018 Wisconsin Solo and Small Firm Conference.

Antoinette Lang, who tripped over electrical cords at a music festival, can proceed with her negligence claims against the sound company, now that a state appeals court has reversed a circuit court decision in favor of the defendants.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has decided to consider whether a circuit court should have suppressed the results of a blood sample where the defendant withdrew her consent to be tested before the lab analyzed the blood.

State law requires subsidized bus transportation for children attending private school, in some cases. Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld (2-1) a decision to deny such benefits to a private, religious school.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is holding a public hearing tomorrow morning on a petition that would allow parties filing counterclaims or cross claims to move for a default judgment when an opposing party fails to timely reply.