Madison, WI – The State Bar of Wisconsin’s Bench and Bar Committee is pleased to announce that Iowa County Circuit Court Judge William D. Dyke is the recipient of the 2015 Lifetime Jurist Achievement Award. Dyke will receive his award on Thursday, June 25 at 5:30 p.m. at the State Bar’s Annual Meeting & Conference in Lake Geneva.
The Lifetime Jurist Achievement Award recognizes a jurist who has demonstrated outstanding, long-term judicial service as a sitting judge.
Dyke was nominated for the award by five Iowa County lawyers.
For more information contact Katie Stenz, public relations coordinator, State Bar of Wisconsin. She can be reached at org kstenz wisbar wisbar kstenz org, or by phone at (608) 250-6025.
“He has demonstrated that he possesses the judicial temperament, genuine concern, and competence to fulfill his role as an impartial arbiter,” said one of the lawyers who nominated Dyke. “His contributions to the practice of law and to the communities he serves deserve recognition.”
Dyke has served as the circuit court judge of Iowa County for 18 years. During his time on the bench he’s helped to improve the lives of adults and teenagers. In his first years, he founded Iowa County’s Teen Court program – the second in the state, and now the oldest and longest-running.
“Young people need our encouragement. They need to be able to dream and they need to be able to look with some hope to the future. And I think that the Teen Court is designed to do that,” Dyke said.
As home foreclosures became more prominent after the 2008 economic crisis, Dyke added mediation as part of the process in Iowa County. The Foreclosure Mediation Program involves volunteer lawyers, and allows distressed homeowners the opportunity to informally resolve mortgage defaults without foreclosure. The program has benefited many homeowners and serves as a model for other programs in circuit courts around Wisconsin.
In addition to his time as a judge, Dyke has built a prominent career through activities and endeavors that include, illustrating a children’s book, founding the Madison Farmer’s Market, helping to produce a cult-classic science fiction movie, serving as mayor of Madison, running unsuccessfully as governor of Wisconsin and vice president of the United States, interviewing John F. Kennedy and hosting a popular local children’s television program.
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