Those who willingly took alcohol or drugs to become intoxicated and then committed a crime could no longer cite their altered mental state as a defense under a bill a state Senate committee passed Friday.
Read More »Asbestos bill focuses on full disclosure in lawsuits
A last-minute change to a bill passed by the state Senate on Wednesday would let judges decide when it is appropriate to temporarily halt asbestos-related lawsuits.
Tagged with: asbestos
Read More »Senate passes driver liability limits in tight vote (UPDATE)
The state Senate approved a bill Wednesday that would prevent parents from having to pay more than $300,000 in civil cases when their children under age 18 cause car crashes.
Tagged with: Fred Risser Glenn Grothman liability
Read More »Rottier cites cancer battle in battery plea bargain (UPDATE)
Shortly after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge Friday, Daniel Rottier said his recent battle with cancer had led to drinking and possibly his attack on his wife with a cane earlier this month.
Tagged with: Daniel Rottier Habush Habush & Rottier William Hanrahan
Read More »‘I’m sorry’ bill gets Assembly approval (UPDATE)
The state Assembly approved on a voice vote Tuesday on a bill that would let doctors and other medical providers apologize or express fault for botched medical procedures without having to worry their words would be used against them in court.
Tagged with: Erik Severson malpractice Robin Vos Torts Wisconsin Association for Justice
Read More »Assembly OKs bill to allow appeals of injunctions
The Wisconsin Assembly voted along party lines, 60-36, Tuesday in favor of a bill meant to speed up legal challenges made to recently passed state laws.
Tagged with: collective bargaining Injunctions photo ID
Read More »Bill would let victims see presentencing reports
Crime victims would be able to view presentence investigation reports under a bill heard by the Assembly Judiciary Committee on Thursday.
Tagged with: Pat Strachota
Read More »Bill meant to prevent ’empty chairs’ in parental-rights cases
A bill being pushed by Republican lawmakers is meant to prevent defense attorneys, in cases involving the termination of parental rights, from having to waste time sitting next to “empty chairs.”
Tagged with: State Public Defender
Read More »Bill would end parents’ unlimited liability for auto accidents
Republican lawmakers are trying to get rid of the unlimited liability that parents are exposed to under Wisconsin statutes if their children cause an automobile accident before turning 18.
Tagged with: Eric Farnsworth Gary Hebl Glenn Grothman Jim Ott
Read More »Assembly passes bill to aid prosecution of synthetic drugs
The state Assembly voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of legislation meant, in part, to prevent prosecutors from having to enlist pharmacologists to attest to the psychological effects of synthetic drugs in cases against sellers of the banned substances.
Tagged with: Garey Bies synthetic drugs
Read More »Bill would take question of consent out of human-trafficking cases
Whether alleged victims of human trafficking consented to sexual acts would no longer be a question juries could consider under a bill approved by a state Senate committee Tuesday.
Read More »Lawmakers move to get faster rulings on injunctions appeals (UPDATE)
The Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor voted 3-2 Tuesday in favor of a bill that proponents say would force more prompt rulings on appeals of circuit courts’ injunctions.
Tagged with: collective bargaining District 4 Court of Appeals Fred Risser Glenn Grothman photo ID Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Prosecutors face tough realities when deciding not to pursue a case
Ozaukee County District Attorney Adam Gerol’s job often makes him unpopular.
Tagged with: Adam Gerol Joe DeCecco Wisconsin District Attorneys Association Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »CAPITOLISMS BLOG: Well, at least we’re not a judicial hellhole
It’s too bad for the Republicans who control the statehouse that tort reform seems to be far less of an issue of public concern than the economy.
Tagged with: Scott Walker tort reform Torts
Read More »Claims Board backs bill to increase compensation for wrongly incarcerated
Members of the Wisconsin Claims Board, which acts as an arbiter in disputes against the state, expressed support Thursday for a bill that would increase the compensation the wrongly incarcerated can receive for each year spent behind bars.
Tagged with: David Turnpaugh Pat Strachota
Read More »High court hears Oshkosh roundabout fight
Although Oshkosh officials made a blunder in notifying a property owner of special taxes for a nearby roundabout, they will have a second chance to set things right.
Tagged with: Annette Ziegler Wisconsin Supreme Court WisDOT
Read More »Commission gives OK to domestic violence shelters
The state's Building Commission approved two projects Wednesday meant to provide shelter to victims of domestic violence.
Tagged with: domestic violence
Read More »Dead man’s estate postpones Claims Board hearing
A hearing for a man who died while trying to obtain compensation for his wrongful incarceration has been postponed.
Tagged with: Claims Board Forest Shomberg
Read More »Dead man’s wrongful conviction request set for hearing
The mother of a Madison man who died while trying to obtain compensation for a false conviction will get her day before a state board later this month.
Tagged with: Annette Bruner Forest Shomberg Michael Schumacher Nathan Otis
Read More »CAPITOLISMS BLOG: Discord in the court
At least two justices on the state's Supreme Court have lobbied Senators in favor of a bill that would change the way the title of chief justice is bestowed in Wisconsin.
Tagged with: Ann Walsh Bradley Annette Ziegler David Prosser Michael Gableman N. Patrick Crooks Pat Roggensack Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Justices move forward with publicizing OLR investigations
A state Supreme Court hearing anticipated for February will offer the public a chance to weigh in on a proposal to make public information about ongoing investigations into attorney conduct.
Tagged with: Supreme Court Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Bills would change way Claims Board operates (UPDATE)
If a bill introduced this week had been law earlier this year, David Turnpaugh would be out $780.90.
Tagged with: David Turnpaugh Garey Bies Gary Hebl Keith Findley Pat Strachota Paul Van Grunsven Wisconsin Innocence Project wrongful conviction
Read More »Claims board agrees to compensate wrongfully convicted man (UPDATE)
The Wisconsin State Claims Board has decided to award a wrongly convicted man $36,847.89 following his third attempt before the panel to seek compensation.
Tagged with: Claims Board David Turnpaugh Paul Van Grunsven
Read More »Commissioners debating if elections can proceed following high court decision
State commissioners plan to decide Monday if Thursday’s Wisconsin Supreme Court decision to overturn a lower court’s contempt order will allow recertification elections for public-school unions to move forward this year, as previously planned.
Tagged with: Juan Colas unions Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Wis. Supreme Court voids contempt order preventing union elections (UPDATE)
The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 5-2 Thursday to void a Dane County judge’s contempt order that would have prevented recertification elections for public school unions from taking place this year.
Tagged with: Ann Walsh Bradley Annette Ziegler J.B. Van Hollen Juan Colas Kevin St. John Michael Gableman Pat Roggensack Patrick Crooks Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Bill aims to boost awards in wind farm lawsuits
Lawmakers who have put up obstacles to lawsuits against businesses are pushing a bill that would let plaintiffs recoup more money in actions against wind farms.
Tagged with: Andre Jacque Frank Lasee Glenn Grothman Sierra Club wind farms
Read More »Senate approves chief justice election
Republicans in the Wisconsin Senate approved a proposal Tuesday to amend the state constitution to allow state Supreme Court Justices to elect their chief every two years.
Tagged with: Annette Ziegler David Prosser Jon Erpenbach Mary Lazich Michael Gableman Pat Roggensack recusal Shirley Abrahamson Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Van Hollen on Act 10: ‘We shall win’ (PHOTO SLIDESHOW)
Arguing that the law penalizes those who exercise their constitutional right of association, Madison lawyer Lester Pines argued Monday that Wisconsin’s Supreme Court should strike down the state’s controversial collective bargaining legislation.
Tagged with: Ann Walsh Bradley collective bargaining Cullen Weston Pines & Bach J.B. Van Hollen John Markson Juan Colas Kevin St. John Lester Pines Shirley Abrahamson unions Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Chief justice cites ‘bully pulpit’ as source of constitutional amendment (UPDATE)
Republican lawmaker’s push to retool the way Wisconsin’s chief justice title is bestowed could be, longtime Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson said Wednesday, a result of her ability to use the “bully pulpit.”
Tagged with: Shirley Abrahamson Wisconsin Supreme Court
Read More »Senate passes bill to improve synthetic drug prosecutions
The state Senate passed a bill Tuesday meant in part to prevent prosecutors from having to enlist pharmacologists to attest to the psychological effects of synthetic drugs in cases against sellers of the banned substances.
Tagged with: synthetic drugs
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