Fires at two transmission substations in Wisconsin's capital knocked out power to more than 11,000 customers on a sweltering day, shutting down government buildings, courtrooms and businesses and prompting police to call in additional staff.

Tagged with: CCAP Randy Koschnick

Wisconsin's courts director is considering removing records of criminal cases that ended in dismissal or acquittals from the state's popular online courts database within months, rather than decades, out of concern that people are abusing the information.

Tagged with: CCAP Denis Moran

John Birdsall has seen it happen again and again in his 20-plus years of criminal-defense practice: A client is charged with a crime but never convicted.

Tagged with: CCAP Erik Guenther John Birdsall Wisconsin State Bar

Mandatory e-filing in circuit courts will be the law of the land in Wisconsin starting July 1, but making it officially so proved to be a monumental task for the state’s highest court on Thursday.

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Officials from Wisconsin's trial courts encouraged the state Supreme Court on Tuesday to green light mandatory e-filing throughout the state.

Tagged with: CCAP e-filing Katherine Koespell Lynn Hron Richard Sankovitz Robert Dreps Wisconsin Supreme Court

A proposal to increase the fees charged filers of small-claims lawsuits could help county clerks around the state fill budgetary holes resulting from a fairly recent change to the claims limit on civil cases.

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Nearly all records created by state lawmakers, including bill drafts and communications with staff, would not be subject to the Wisconsin open records law under a sweeping surprise change Republicans introduced in committee Thursday as an amendment to the state budget.

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The Wisconsin Supreme Court will be holding a public hearing on a petition to create a new statute that protects personal information in circuit court records.

Tagged with: CCAP Gerald Ptacek Identity theft

Although Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed budget rejected the state Supreme Court’s request for the money to implement mandatory e-filing, the proposal is moving forward.

Tagged with: CCAP e-filing Robert Wirtz Wisconsin Supreme Court

The state's chief judges committee has filed a petition to mandate e-filing in all circuit court cases.

Tagged with: CCAP e-filing Robert Wirtz State Bar

State criminal defense lawyers who weighed in on a proposal to remove the names of most crime victims from filings in appeals cases are opposed to the move.

Tagged with: April Southwick CCAP DOJ Gimbel Reilly Guerin & Brown Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

Concerned by studies and articles that, she said, seemed to infer judges were sentencing black defendants more harshly than their white counterparts, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Pat Roggensack is paying thousands of dollars of her own money to research the potential disparity.

Tagged with: Ann Walsh Bradley CCAP Pat Roggensack Shirley Abrahamson

Few motions in criminal cases cause more confusion than those based on a court’s inherent authority.

Tagged with: Anthony Cotton CCAP Consolidated Court Automation Programs Kuchler & Cotton On the Defensive Wisconsin Supreme Court

Assembly Republicans' decision to wrap up their two-year session has left a number of high-profile bills in limbo.

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Here's a bipartisan bill that ought to go no further — proof that members of both parties are perfectly capable of being wrong when it comes to ensuring free and open access to public records.

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A bill that would remove case information from the state courts’ online records system passed out of a state Senate committee Thursday morning.

Tagged with: CCAP Glenn Grothman John Voelker Mary Czaja

A bill that would remove case information from the state’s online courts system will be heard by a Senate committee Thursday.

Tagged with: CCAP Glenn Grothman records

If you're looking for a sign of spring in Wisconsin, opponents of openness are once again proposing restrictions on public information contained on one of the nation's most accessible online systems of court records.

Tagged with: Bill Lueders CCAP Glenn Grothman

Supporters of a bill that would remove case information from the state courts’ online records system said Thursday that the harm it would undo far outweighs the loss of the public’s ability to easily obtain court records.

Tagged with: Bill Lueders CCAP Garey Bies Glenn Grothman Jerry Petrowski Joel Kleefisch John Voelker Mary Czaja Robin Vos

A bill that seeks to remove case information about a person who was acquitted from the state’s online courts system will get a public hearing Thursday.

Tagged with: CCAP Glenn Grothman Mary Czaja

The State Bar’s Board of Governors reaffirmed Friday that it supports expanding expunction proceedings for defendants involved in criminal cases.

Tagged with: CCAP State Bar Steve Levine

The latest bill to remove case information about a person who was acquitted from the state’s online courts system was introduced in the Assembly on Wednesday.

Tagged with: CCAP Glenn Grothman Mary Czaja

Supporters of a measure to disallow the use of names of crime victims in appellate paperwork say it is a step toward ensuring victims’ ordeals don’t haunt them forever.

Tagged with: April Southwick Bob Dreps CCAP Godfrey & Kahn Jill Karofsky Wisconsin Supreme Court

A proposal that would remove information from the state’s online courts website about cases in which a person was acquitted is poised to receive heavy Republican support in the coming weeks.

Tagged with: CCAP Evan Goyke Glenn Grothman Lena Taylor Mary Czaja Robin Vos Wisconsin Circuit Court Access

Two legislators are looking for co-sponsors for a bill that seeks to remove information about those acquitted of a crime from the state’s publicly accessible online courts system.

Tagged with: CCAP Glenn Grothman Mary Czaja

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has agreed to take up expunction in certain criminal cases – a topic at least one legislator has sought to address in the current session.

Tagged with: CCAP David Schultz Evan Goyke Nick Milroy Wisconsin Supreme Court

State lawmakers are again second-guessing Wisconsin's online database for court records.

Tagged with: CCAP Robin Vos

The top lawmaker in the Wisconsin Assembly says he favors limiting access to some information in the state's online court records system.

Tagged with: CCAP Robin Vos

A bill introduced in the state Legislature this month is intended to protect consumers, but would limit Wisconsin’s ability to fairly report businesses’ litigation history.

Tagged with: CCAP Glenn Grothman John Voelker Lena Taylor Wisconsin Circuit Court Access

A Milwaukee state representative who earlier this year tried to advance a bill that would create a bifurcated online court records system now plans to focus on expunction instead.

Tagged with: CCAP Consolidated Court Automation Programs Evan Goyke John Voelker Jonathan LaVoy Kim & LaVoy Nick Milroy Wisconsin Circuit Court Access