Rule change could channel more money to civil legal aid

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The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday approved a change to civil procedure that could channel more money toward civil legal services.

The justices voted unanimously at Wednesday’s rules conference to change the state’s civil procedure to require that half of the residual money left over from class-action settlements pay for civil legal-aid services. The Wisconsin Trust Account Foundation would distribute the money to civil legal-aid organizations around the state.

The Committee of Chief Judges opposed the change because it would limit judges’ discretion to award the money to local non-profit groups.

Under the cy pres doctrine, judges can award residual money from class-action lawsuits to organizations that can be expected to serve the interests of class members, including access-to-justice programs.

The rule would require judges to channel at least 50 percent of that money to the Trust Account Foundation while they would maintain their discretion over any remaining money.

The court approved the proposal as it was drafted after the group that had petitioned the court for the change, the Access to Justice Commission, amended the petition in February to adopt minor changes suggested by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.

The commission petitioned the court in October to adopt the change. The commission is a 17-person body that works to find ways to make sure the civil-justice system is open to everyone.

Once the justices approve the petition’s final language, the new rule will take effect Jan. 1. Exactly how much additional money the change will produce cannot be determined because records concerning class-action settlements are typically not public. Follow @erikastrebel