Wisconsin Law Journal – WI Legal News & Resources Wisconsin Legal News & Resources

On Nov. 6, the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Brackeen v. Haaland, a case which presented numerous constitutional and legislative issues regarding the Indian Child Welfare Act or ICWA. 

Few recent trials have attracted as much attention in the non-legal world than the Brooks trial in Waukesha. 

About a week after Elon Musk assumed control of Twitter on Oct. 28, the social media platform stirred up a storm of controversy by abruptly firing about half of its 7,500 employees.

While a child of 16 years with a car is going to make his or her own decision about placement, do we really want to give a 7 year old that authority?

Effective Jan. 1, business entity law changes are coming for limited liability companies (LLCs) in Wisconsin.

In 1975, The United States Supreme Court held that a criminal defendant has a constitutional right to waive counsel and self-represent in a criminal case. Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806 (1975).  While the trial court has a responsibility to discourage self-representation, it cannot prohibit it. The result can be (and usually is) the circus occurring in the Waukesha trial of the Christmas parade driver Darrell Brooks.

Ten years ago, the average number of cases to report on, between Wisconsin Supreme Court and Court of Appeals (published and citeable unpublished cases) was 15-20 per year. So far this year, there have been zero Supreme Court cases, one published Court of Appeals case and four citeable unpublished Court of Appeals cases.

Josh Kaul and Eric Toney are miles apart on many issues, but when it comes to open government, the candidates vying for Wisconsin attorney general in the Nov. 8 election agree: more money is needed to handle enforcement of the state’s transparency laws.

There’s an old adage that says a person “who is his own lawyer has a fool for a client.” Generally speaking, it’s true.

After 38 years as a family law attorney with Loeb & Herman LLC, I have joined JAMS as a neutral in its Wisconsin office.

The term “judicial activism” is commonly thrown around to disparage judges. It generally is used to accuse courts of being too aggressive or too liberal.  A recent court of appeals decision contains an element which raises an interesting question.

Wisconsin’s open-records law is most often used by requesters seeking to obtain records from a government agency. But occasionally it works in reverse, allowing someone to block the release of records to a requester.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos won a narrow victory over challenger Adam Steen in the Republican primary and deserves a round of applause from those who want to move on from the past presidential race and look to the future.

Kansas voters opted against overturning a state constitutional right to an abortion on Aug. 2, 2022. A few days later, Indiana lawmakers banned nearly all abortions.

Of all the political grandstanding this campaign season in Wisconsin, Fond du Lac County District Attorney Eric Toney’s sad stunt is among the worst.

It happens in court cases from time to time: Lawyers and judges discussing the meaning of a law can't access the text they need to review.

Perhaps the most common question asked of me by friends, neighbors and family regarding the legal system is “How do I get out of jury service?”

Following the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization overturning half a century of abortion rights under Roe v. Wade, nearly two-thirds of Americans want fundamental court reform, specifically term limits for Supreme Court justices.

It should be no surprise to anyone who has livedin the U.S. for more than a few years that what are considered “rights” can be changed. Our Constitution was written that way: to be amended, time and again.

Disciplining and terminating employees are realities of doing business, but by adhering to certain practices, employers can help reduce the risk of costly litigation.

Banning drop boxes for absentee ballots across Wisconsin was rash and unnecessary.

The confluence of law and politics does not always equal good policy. A good example is the continuing efforts over the years to deal with the issue of the effect of deployed service people and the placement of minor children.

It goes back to age thirteen. That is when my current client, we will call her Andrea, first made it known she wanted Dad’s vintage slot machine in the corner of their unfinished basement. At the time, her older sister Rachel couldn’t have cared less.

The recent ruling by the Wisconsin Supreme Court on anonymity in a suit against the Madison School District was a tough call. We think the court made the right decision, though an argument exists that the court stopped short of genuine transparency.

As employers prepare to carry out possible Reductions-in-Force in anticipation of a looming recession, there are many less drastic alternatives that may be worth considering.

It would be pointless to write a column on the United States legal system and ignore the two significant cases which the court decided this week. One case, New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen significantly expanded gun rights by striking down a New York law which restricted the right of New Yorkers to carry handguns in public.

The admission Thursday by former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman that he had deleted public records, even after he had received open-records requests, isn’t entirely surprising. His conduct at a previous hearing, berating a judge over questions, had already suggested he didn’t want to answer.

On May 24, the Wisconsin Supreme Court, with two justices dissenting, dismissed an appeal of the Court of Appeals decision in State v. Lee, 2021 WI App 12, in a per curium “decision” of less than one page.

A man accused of driving his SUV through a Christmas parade in suburban Milwaukee last year, killing six people and injuring dozens more, this week served notice he will try to persuade a jury that he was mentally ill during the incident and if convicted should go to an institution instead of prison.

Judges have always faced threats because their decisions can send people to prison, overturn laws and settle enormous financial disputes.