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

The decision obviously places lower courts and attorneys in a difficult position, unable to settle any cases in which this issue is present, pending the Publications Committee’s decision whether to publish this and/or the Bailey opinion, and pending a decision ...

What the court held Case: Marotz v. Hallman, Case No. 2005AP1579 Issue: Where an insured is injured as a result of negligence by two tortfeasors, one underinsured and the other not, can the insurer reduce its underinsured motorist liability by ...

Let the Christmas . . . um . . . holiday party begin

The effect of the decision is to increase the likelihood that attorneys appointed as guardian ad litems will get paid, at least some of their fees, and shifting part of the risk that the nonprevailing party will not make court-ordered ...

What the court held Case: In re the Marriage of: Bernier v. Bernier, No. 2004AP625. Issue: In an enforcement action under sec. 767.242, is a successful petitioner entitled to reimbursement of his share of the GAL fees from the interfering ...

Questions have arisen about the Wisconsin Legislature’s approach to open meetings and open records laws following a circuit court judge’s decision earlier this month. A Dane County trial court judge called a couple of legislators on the carpet for holding ...

The court notes that the case has already produced “seemingly unending appellate proceedings.” Unfortunately, unless the Supreme Court again accepts review and again reverses the court of appeals, the case will result in precedent that is both inconsistent with the ...

What the court held Case: Tietsworth v. Harley-Davidson, Inc., No. 2004AP2655 Issue: Can a plaintiff amend his complaint to pursue contract remedies after the supreme court has held his tort claims were properly dismissed pursuant to the economic loss doctrine. ...

In spite of the fact that the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 no longer allows “Chapter 20” filings, this decision is of enormous importance. In fact, its importance is amplified because of the Act. A typical ...

What the court held Case: In re: Sidebottom, No. 04-3621. Issue: Can a debtor file a Chapter 13 petition while a Chapter 7 petition is still pending? Holding: No. The Chapter 13 proceeding must be dismissed on the grounds of ...

The question the decision raises is whether a petition for return under ICARA should always be denied if the abducting parent makes a clear and convincing showing that the other parent has sexually abused or physically abused the child. A ...

What the court held Case: Van De Sande v. Van De Sande, No. 05-2831. Issue: Under ICARA, did the district court properly order a child returned to the jurisdiction of its habitual residence, even though the abducting mother alleged that ...

Seventh Circuit: Milwaukee County’s labor peace ordinance pre-empted

As more and more people turn to the Internet to find their soul mate, lawyers believe online dating sites could become breeding grounds for negligence claims. A pair of recent New York cases has drawn attention to the potential for ...

With a major move only one month away, workers finish final touches on the new Dane County Courthouse. Court operations are scheduled to begin the week of Jan. 9. In one month, the Dane County Circuit Court will move from ...

The court’s conclusion — that amounts received from other tortfeasors who are not underinsured motorists cannot be used to reduce the UIM limits — is plainly contradictory to sec. 632.32(5)(i). This is apparent merely by posing the following hypothetical: all ...

The Wisconsin Court of Appeals held on Dec. 1 that a reducing clause in an underinsured motorist endorsement does not permit reductions for amounts paid by a second tortfeasor who is not an underinsured motorist. Travis L. Bailey was injured ...

The decision, and the reaction to it, provide a warning to any attorney representing a client who wants to proceed anonymously. Within a day of the decision being released, it was being criticized in the blawgosphere, not for the decision ...

The Seventh Circuit sparked a controversy in the realm of legal blogs on Nov. 21, when it suggested sua sponte that the district court may have erred in allowing a party to proceed anonymously. According to the decision, when Jane ...

The good and bad news about metadata

An interesting question not entirely answered by the opinion is whether the result would be the same, regardless of where in the state the suit arose. Arguably, it could be limited to southeastern Wisconsin and other parts of the state ...

What the court held Case: Rainbow Country Rentals and Retail, Inc. v. Ameritech Publishing, Inc., No. 2004AP239 Issue: Is a stipulated damages clause in a yellow pages contract enforceable? Holding: Yes. The telephone company is no longer a state-sponsored monopoly, ...

“A doctor who provides care to an injured party on credit, secured by an assignment, should not have to sue anyone and end up taking the [case] all the way to the Supreme Court.” Kenneth J. Yorgan Chiropractor What is ...

On. Nov. 16, the Milwaukee County Board overrode a veto by County Executive Scott Walker. The move keeps the courts fully staffed. However, the final budget only restores $2.9 million of the extra $4.4 million that Chief Judge Kitty K. ...

Independent contractor physician creates Title VII liability for hospital

Although the court characterizes its decision as being required by prior precedent, it is actually a significant extension of prior court of appeals’ precedent, and conflicts with Supreme Court precedent that, at least arguably, requires that any read-in charges be ...

What the court held Case: State v. Monica S. Lackershire, No. 05-1189-CR Issue: Can a defendant withdraw her guilty plea where there was no mention of read-in charges at the plea hearing, but the court considered read-ins at sentencing? Holding: ...

On numerous occasions, the court has affirmed sentences within the prescribed guideline range, despite little or even no discussion by the district court of any factors other than those that resulted in that guideline range. U.S. v. Dean, 414 F.3d ...

What the court held Case: U.S. v. Cunningham, No. 05-1774 Issue: When a court imposes a sentence within the guidelines, is a statement by the court that it has considered the U.S.S.G. 3553(a) factors sufficient? Holding: No. When the defendant ...

“The justice system works and the Legislature should allow that process to work and allow juries to determine those damages.” David M. Skoglind Aiken & Scoptur The Wisconsin Senate passed a bill last week that would reestablish medical malpractice caps ...