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

“We believe … that a dues increase will be necessary for fiscal year ’05. Michelle Behnke President-elect The State Bar Board of Governors has told the Finance Committee that it can consider a dues increase when developing the budget for ...

Hon. Richard S. Brown Where the renter of an automobile was not given a copy of the rental agreement, an exclusion to the insurance coverage in the agreement is unenforceable, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held on Nov. 19. Phillip ...

The court’s general holding — that an exclusion to insurance coverage is invalid if the insured is not given notice of the provisions — cannot reasonably be disputed, as evidenced by the unanimous authority to that effect from other jurisdictions. ...

“A defendant does not have to choose between seeking a dismissal and the opportunity to present a defense if a motion to dismiss is denied. That would give a distinctly unfair advantage to the prosecution.” Hon. Daniel P. Anderson Wisconsin ...

The decision appears to foreclose review in circuit court of municipal court dismissals, but in fact does not. As the majority observed in a footnote, “the City had an opportunity to seek a meaningful review of the municipal court’s judgment ...

“If a case has been determined by the Supreme Court to have significant enough statewide importance … for review, then that case ought, if at all possible, to be decided by the Supreme Court.” Lynn Laufenberg Laufenberg & Hoefle, S.C. ...

“Purpose alone is not conclusive. The court must also consider the effect of the improvement by analyzing (1) the type of benefits conferred, and (2) their extent. This consideration should bear the greatest weight.” Hon. Thomas Cane Wisconsin Court of ...

The decision is problematic for two reasons: it is, at a minimum, logically inconsistent, and may be actually incorrect, insofar as it holds the City’s purpose — if that purpose was to benefit the City rather than the property owners ...

Hon. Margaret Vergeront The legislative privilege, sec. 757.13, is unconstitutional insofar as it purports to mandate that courts adjourn proceedings involving state legislators, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held on Nov. 13. On Oct. 17, 2002, a criminal complaint was ...

Although the court declined to define “session,” its decision and instructions upon remand implicitly reject Chvala’s interpretation and construe it to mean only actual session. The references to accommodating the legislature’s “schedule” cannot reasonably be reconciled with an interpretation that ...

Daubert: Bill would adopt federal rules for expert testimony

The decision has the potential to undermine the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Duckworth v. Eagan, 492 U.S. 195 (1989), at least when a defendant is arrested in Wisconsin and prosecuted in federal court. It is noteworthy that Duckworth is ...

Marketing Law firms No matter what size they are, law firms need to let people know who they are and what types of services they offer. Whether they target prospective clients or possible referral sources, law firms are engaged in ...

Marketing Law firms No matter what size they are, law firms need to let people know who they are and what types of services they offer. Whether they target prospective clients or possible referral sources, law firms are engaged in ...

Hon. Patricia S. Curley Service upon an agent in lieu of personal service on the individual is permissible, where the process server served a person claiming to be the defendant’s agent, pursuant to sec. 801.11(1)(d), the Wisconsin Court of Appeals ...

It is difficult to quarrel with the court’s holding affirming the dismissal of the suit against Diamond Blade Warehouse, Inc. However, the reinstatement of the suit against Mansfield suffers from two flaws: (1) sec. 801.11(1)(d) is either ambiguous, or it ...

The Seventh Circuit held on Nov. 6 that, even though it was misleading for a police officer to tell a suspect who asked for an attorney “right now,” that he could not accommodate the request, admission of the suspect’s subsequent ...

It was error for an administrative law judge to find an applicant for workers compensation guilty of “obstructing” for refusing to submit to an MMPI test unless she could get a copy of it, the Labor and Industry Review Commission ...

The decision is flawed in two respects: it is contrary to precedent; and the hearsay definition of “statement” has no place in the analysis of what “statement” means in this context. The Wisconsin Supreme Court addressed the MMPI long ago ...

“The sole error committed by Cape was its failure to incorporate a last-minute price increase transmitted by one of its subcontractors during the final hour of bid assembly. The error had nothing to do with a misjudgment or omission in ...

Although the court invited further review by the Supreme Court, and the issue is an important one that definitely warrants further review, it may be foolhardy for the DOT to actually seek such review. Cape may have lost the argument ...

Marketing Law firms No matter what size they are, law firms need to let people know who they are and what types of services they offer. Whether they target prospective clients or possible referral sources, law firms are engaged in ...

A motel that rented out bedbug infested rooms was properly ordered to pay $186,000 in punitive damages to customers, even though compensatory damages were only $5,000 per customer, the Seventh Circuit held on Oct. 21. In downtown Chicago, a Motel ...

The court’s musings about punitive damages may be insightful, but their utility in future cases is questionable. For example, it is not clear how, or even whether, a defendant’s trial tactics could be presented to a jury. State Farm v. ...

“I want lawyers put on notice of a potential significant change on something they do every day — set fees.” Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson Wisconsin Supreme Court A petition that would require attorneys to provide written estimates of total ...

“What I learned was that Waukesha has a really vital, distinct business community, which is very entrepreneurial and growing quickly, with expanding legal needs, and they are looking for more sophisticated legal help than was traditionally needed out there. I ...

A budget row between Milwaukee County and the court system there evolved this month into a broader campaign that is headed for the State Capitol. Court and county officials resolved, at least for now, court leaders’ objections to County Executive ...

“Dr. Hanacik’s express concession that he could not give an opinion to a reasonable degree of chiropractic certainty on Mrs. Weber’s future health-care expenses negated his earlier testimony where he purported to give such an estimate.” Judge Ralph Adam Fine ...

There are two ways to interpret this case: (1) it is incompatible with the Supreme Court’s decision in Bleyer v. Gross, 19 Wis.2d 305, 120 N.W.2d 156 (1963), and entitled to no precedential value; or (2) it is an object ...

A defendant convicted of both the charge of repeated acts of sexual assault, contrary to sec. 948.025, and individual acts of sexual assault, does not get to choose which of the charges must be vacated, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals ...