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

Consider this: as recently as a year ago, the term “PFAS” was relatively unknown to many lawyers, engineers and other environmental professionals.

Tagged with: EPA

Employment disputes present special difficulties because of the strong emotions involved on both sides.

Tagged with: David E. Jones Employment mediation

Imagine this: You’re a lawyer representing one of many defendants in a new lawsuit. You receive an email from the plaintiff’s lawyers, addressed to you as well as counsel for 19 other defendants. All that’s in the email is a link to a Dropbox folder, which contains 20 sets of discovery requests (one to each defendant).

Tagged with: e-discovery Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Foley & Lardner Greg Heinen

On Oct. 22, the Wisconsin Supreme Court will hold a public hearing on a petition to amend the Supreme Court rule regarding mandatory GAL training.

Among the changes in the practice of family law over the years (and there have been many) none have been as significant as the transition of the practice from litigation focused to settlement focused.

Tagged with: Family Law Gregg Herman

The latest Marquette Law School poll should serve as a warning to President Donald Trump and encourage more Republicans to support reasonable limits on guns.

Tagged with: gun control

The Wisconsin Supreme Court does not accept many family-law cases (the last one, other than one regarding grandparent visitation, was McReath v. McReath, 2011 WI 66, 335 Wis.2d.643, 789 N.W. 89 eight years ago).

Almost a decade ago, McKinsey & Co. surveyed board directors about their level of understanding of the risks their companies faced, and stunningly, nearly one-third replied that they had limited or no understanding of their company’s risk profile.

Tagged with: Mindi Giftos security

If you're in the business of brewing (or any other advertising), be careful about trash talking the competition, even if what you are saying is "technically right."

Tagged with: 7th Circuit false advertising

Female judges from the country of Georgia recently visited Milwaukee to learn more about the U.S. judiciary, particularly to learn about how women support each other in the legal profession, to observe courtrooms in action, and to learn about how the law affects the lives of women and how it has advanced or hindered equality in the U.S.

Tagged with: Michael Best & Friedrich Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren

As Justice Shirley Abrahamson ends her tenure on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, after 43 years and more than 1,300 authored opinions, she leaves a rich legacy of legal scholarship, importantly including her support for government transparency.

Tagged with: Christa Westerberg Pines Bach Shirley Abrahamson

It is rare enough that the Wisconsin Supreme Court decides a family-law case (the last one of any significance was McReath eight years ago) and even more rare when the case involves issues of constitutional law. The court’s recent decision in Michels v. Kelsey, 2019 WI 57 also involves issues of the nature of family in our society and the effect of the legal system on families.

Two months ago, we applauded Attorney General Josh Kaul's proposal to strengthen Wisconsin's efforts to combat human trafficking, and called for bipartisan support to add positions at the Department of Justice to help with investigations.

Tagged with: human trafficking Josh Kaul

Eight states didn't wait for the U.S. Supreme Court to save them. The high court ruled last month to allow states to continue the destructive practice of partisan gerrymandering, but eight states already have — or voted to put in place last year — systems for taming their partisan spirits.

Tagged with: redistricting

The nation’s high court isn’t going to rescue Wisconsin or any other states from gerrymandered voting districts. Citizens are going to have to mend this themselves. And a renewed push to approve Assembly Bill 303 starts now. Call or write ...

Tagged with: gerrymandering redistricting U.S. Supreme Court

Most law firms have an established document retention and file destruction policy. They take proactive steps to update and revise their policies in response to the ever-changing laws and regulations that apply to this area. However, resources that offer guidance on document retention and file destruction policies often overlook the nuances of electronic filing systems.

Tagged with: e-filing Kimberly Finnigan

It sent a strong message. Law enforcement and elected officials standing behind U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil as he introduced his first bill, HR 2149, "Exposing the Financing of Human Trafficking Act," at the Racine County Sheriff's Substation.

Tagged with: sex trafficking

So, this week, I was coming back from a vacation after a pretty solid month of briefing and hearings and research, and expecting to return to more of the same.

When it comes to employment choices, having a support obligation means that the good ol' USA is no longer a free country.

Tagged with: Employment Family Law Gregg Herman jobs

On May 15, the Supreme Court will hear arguments concerning the legality of the December 2018 “extraordinary session.” The League of Women Voters of Wisconsin is one of the plaintiffs in this lawsuit. In recent weeks, there have been some misconceptions perpetuated by those who oppose the merits of our case. Here are some facts of the lawsuit:

Tagged with: Constitution League of Women Voters Wisconsin Supreme Court

Founders intended to avoid an all-powerful presidency.

Tagged with: U.S. Supreme Court

It’s not that the previous law on relocation was perfect, but the new version, while improving on certain aspects, violates what should be a principal tenet for legislation: Don’t adopt laws, at least parts of which, everyone is just going to ignore.

Tagged with: Family Law Gregg Herman

The race for Wisconsin Supreme Court produced one of the closest results in recent state history. With an unofficial count of the more than 1.2 million votes cast in Tuesday's election for the open seat, Judge Brian Hagedorn, a favorite of conservatives, leads Judge Lisa Neubauer, the chief judge of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals who drew substantial backing from liberals, by roughly 6,000 votes.

Tagged with: Brian Hagedorn Lisa Neubauer Wisconsin Supreme Court

With a new legislative session underway, once again there are efforts to require Wisconsin family courts to order equal physical placement in every – or virtually every – case.

Tagged with: domestic abuse Family Law Gregg Herman

The use of medical marijuana — marijuana prescribed by a physician — has been shown to have substantial benefit for patients with cancer, glaucoma, Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis, among other conditions.

Tagged with: marijuana

An interesting article recently appeared in the Wisconsin Lawyer concerning domestic abuse and child custody: Meuer, Gibart & Roach, “Domestic Abuse: Little Impact on Child Custody and Placement”, Wisconsin Lawyer, Vol. 91, No. 11 (December, 2018).

Tagged with: domestic abuse Family Law Gregg Herman

Five years ago state Rep. Melissa Sargent rejected the backward thinking of those who seek to maintain a failed "drug war" and announced: "The facts clearly show that legalization is right for Wisconsin and that the most dangerous thing about marijuana is that it's illegal."

Tagged with: Gov. Tony Evers marijuana Melissa Sargent

Lawmakers, judges and lawyers have all struggled to find the appropriate balance between the ideas of liberal discovery, designed to ensure that every party can secure the best facts to support its positions, and the rising cost of litigation, much of which is spent on discovery, especially of electronic information.

Tagged with: Civil Procedure

If America wants to be great, America and its leaders must be good.

Interrogators have tricks to get suspects to waive their Miranda rights and, once those are waived, to confess to crimes. But a confession won’t do the state any good unless a prosecutor can use it at trial.

Tagged with: Critic's Corner Michael D. Cicchini