Vol. 75, No. 3, March
2002
Letters
Letters to the editor: The Wisconsin Lawyer
publishes as many letters in each issue as space permits. Please limit
letters to 500 words; letters may be edited for length and clarity.
Letters should address the issues, and not be a personal attack on
others. Letters endorsing political candidates cannot be accepted. Please mail letters to "Letters to the Editor," Wisconsin
Lawyer, P.O. Box 7158, Madison, WI 53707-7158, fax them to (608)
257-4343, or email them to wislawyer@wisbar.org.
Bar Responds to Newspaper Coverage of UPL Issues
Several Wisconsin newspapers recently covered unauthorized practice
of law (UPL) issues raised by Ed Marion and others, specifically in the
context of appearances before the State Public Service Commission. State
Bar President-elect Pat Ballman sent a letter to the editor to those
newspapers, which was published by the Wisconsin State Journal, among
others. The text of President-elect Ballman's letter follows:
"On behalf of the State Bar of Wisconsin, I'd like to reiterate that
agencies such as the Public Service Commission need the participation of
nonlawyers, through factual and expert testimony. And, of course,
nonlawyer parties may represent their own interests before the PSC or a
court. But it remains the law of this state (and the law of most, if not
all, states in this country) that only lawyers may represent the legal
interests of another. State ex rel. State Bar of Wisconsin v. Keller, 21
Wis. 2d 100 (1963).
"That is the law, and it is good policy, because lawyers have the
legal expertise necessary to allow them, in fact to license them, to
competently represent another's legal interests. In addition to having
an obligation to serve their clients, lawyers have an attendant duty to
serve the justice system. These rules were enacted, and remain the law,
because they protect the public."
Patricia K. Ballman
President-elect, State Bar of Wisconsin
Looking for Lawyer Ancestor
I am a lawyer in Washington state. My only lawyer ancestor, E.
Dealton Tichenor, died in Andersonville Prison in 1864, after
"practicing in the justice courts of Crawford County (Wisconsin)."
I would appreciate suggestions about how I can fill out descriptions
of his legal career in the 1850s, when he was in his 30s. Any
suggestions would be appreciated, but one particular question is, what
were the "justice courts" in the new state of Wisconsin and what was
their jurisdiction? I have a copy of one 1861 letter to Tichenor as a
lawyer about real estate transactions from the Wisconsin State
Historical Society archives, but that's all I know.
Larry Jones
lawjones@oz.net
Wisconsin Lawyer
