By: dmc-admin//May 10, 2010//
Phone numbers, forms and even courtroom etiquette policies can often be found on circuit court websites.
On a daily basis, Waukesha attorney Paul E. Bucher references the local court site, as well as surrounding counties, to browse the “mundane” or even electronically file court documents.
“In this day and age, it’s imperative for us to have access to as much information as quickly as possible,” said the Gatzke, Ruppelt & Bucher SC defense lawyer.
But not all 72 county courts in Wisconsin maintain an online presence.
Crawford, Iron and Monroe counties for the most part still rely on word-of-mouth or telephone inquiries to keep practitioners in the know.
“It’s never been an issue,” said longtime Iron County Circuit Court Judge Patrick J. Madden, of not having a website.
There are no plans to develop one either, largely because there isn’t a groundswell of complaints, said Clerk of Court Karen Ransanici.
She occasionally handles calls from attorneys regarding protocol in the court, but said nobody has said “hey, you really need to have a Web page.”
“People ask if they can appear by phone or if the judge allows certain things, but that’s pretty much all,” she said. “It’s not like Milwaukee where they have a lot of different procedural stuff,” she said.
In addition, the Wisconsin State Court site provides a roster of court staff with contact information, and the State Bar of Wisconsin site offers links to regularly updated local court rules.
While there are multiple outlets online to find relevant court information, attorneys, especially those fresh to the practice, say there is merit to having a local court website.
Criminal attorney Maggie Premo primarily practices in Monroe County and said online information about whether certain traffic offenses require court appearances would be helpful.
“If I knew ahead of time, I’d know whether or not to come to court, or just respond in writing,” she said.
Premo, of Arndt, Buswell & Thorn SC, in Sparta is a 2009 law school graduate and admitted that she is among a generation of attorneys who “rely on websites for everything.”
At the same time, Premo said when she joined the firm she relied on the senior partners to give her a sense of what to expect from judges in the county.
“I see value in having a local court site, but it’s not absolutely imperative and it’s not like I can’t practice without one,” she said.
Fellow Sparta attorney and 2009 law school graduate Joshua M. Koch agreed.
“It’s a little more direct if you cut out one extra step, but I don’t think it’s prohibitive by any means,” he said.
Nevertheless, the court is in the preliminary stages of developing a website.
Clerk of Court Shirley Chapiewsky said ideally, the site could include basic court information along with filing fee information and downloadable forms.
The same is true in Crawford County, which is in transition. Judge Michael Kirchman retired last November after 33 years on the bench and incoming judge James P. Czajkowski acknowledged the need to develop a site.
“I can’t speak for what the previous judge did or didn’t consider, but I think it’s appropriate to have one,” he said.
Initially, Czajkowski wants to update and post the court’s local rules, but is open to making the site more comprehensive, primarily for visiting attorneys.
In 35 years of practice, Czajkowski has gotten calls from lawyers in other parts of the state asking about local rules in Crawford County.
With only about 20 lawyers in the local bar and “a third of them retired,” he said attorneys in the county already have an intimate knowledge of judicial procedures.
“We do see a lot of lawyers from other areas,” Czajkowski said. “The reality is people not in southwestern Wisconsin or just starting have a need for updates on local rules.”
Premo occasionally practices in La Crosse County and uses its site to access the court’s intake schedule as well as basic information like phone numbers and addresses.
And Koch said locally, pro se litigants would likely benefit from being able to access forms or have an attorney refer them to the website for information.
In his experience, Bucher said there is little doubt that a robust court website can save a busy attorney and his or her client time and money.
“If I’m going to another county, I’d like to know who I’m dealing with and what the procedures are,” he said. “To be honest, I don’t have time to deal with that so I think lawyers realize the value of a court website as a way to be more efficient.”
Jack Zemlicka can be reached at [email protected].