Sep

19

Bipartisanship? Cooperation? Will These Ideas Fly?

Posted by: | September 19, 2011 | 2 Comments

Republican State Sen. Dale Schultz of Richland Center and Democratic State Sen. Timothy Cullen of Janesville did two things a few months ago that were quite remarkable in the light of the super-charged, partisan atmosphere in Madison (and elsewhere) this year. For one, they had lunch together. And for another, they decided to spend a [...]

Print Friendly

May

27

Judge Sumi Does Her Job

Posted by: | May 27, 2011 | 4 Comments

Judge Maryann Sumi issued the long anticipated opinion in Ozanne v. Fitzgerald yesterday, holding: 1) that the circuit courts have jurisdiction to hear cases alleging that a particular piece of legislation was not constitutionally enacted; 2) that the court’s jurisdiction includes challenges alleging noncompliance with Wisconsin’s Open Meetings Law; and that 3) the failure of the March 9, [...]

Print Friendly

Mar

23

Supreme Court Candidates Debate: Testy Talk About Collegiality

Posted by: | March 23, 2011 | Leave a Comment

Four thoughts in the aftermath of the debate Monday evening at Eckstein Hall between incumbent Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser and his challenger in the April 5 election, Assistant Attorney General JoAnne Kloppenburg: First: As a news reporter, I’ve never covered a race for a Supreme Court seat. I was struck by how awkward [...]

Print Friendly

Dec

6

Observations by a 3L in a First-Degree Intentional Homicide Jury Pool

Posted by: | December 6, 2010 | 2 Comments

I was recently summoned to serve as a juror in Jefferson County, Wisconsin. As a 3L about to graduate, I have had some recent exposure in my classes and internships to the jury selection process. Being on the other side of the process, being in the pool of potential jurors, gave me some unique insights [...]

Print Friendly

Jul

19

“Past Formalities” and “Present Realities”: Why Wendy Isn’t a Parent at All

Posted by: | July 19, 2010 | Leave a Comment

On June 24th, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals ruled against a woman seeking legal recognition of her parental rights for the two children she adopted with her ex-partner. The two women adopted their children in 2002 and 2004 from Guatemala. The woman appealing, known in the record as Wendy, stayed at home with the children, [...]

Print Friendly

Feb

4

Mother and Daughter, Justly Proud

Posted by: | February 4, 2010 | Leave a Comment

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Pat Roggensack and Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Ellen Brostrom are wary of almost all of the labels that people try to put on them and on other justices and judges. But one label they are proud of is mother and daughter, and that was clear Thursday during an “On the Issues [...]

Print Friendly

Dec

26

We Elect Judges, Don’t We?

Posted by: | December 26, 2009 | 3 Comments

It is hardly a revelation, but the  Laurel Walker of the Journal Sentinel has done a study demonstrating that a bit more than half of the circuit judges in the five county area assume the bench by appointment, rather than election. This is an important aspect of judicial selection in our state and the paper [...]

Print Friendly

Oct

22

Merit Selection Amendment Introduced

Posted by: | October 22, 2009 | 8 Comments

Yesterday, State Representative Mark Gottlieb (R-Port Washington) announced that he is drafting a constitutional amendment to replace Wisconsin’s current method of judicial elections with “merit selection.” Rep. Gottlieb is a former speaker pro tem of the Assembly, and he is widely regarded as one of the top policy gurus within the Republican caucus. Currently, the [...]

Print Friendly

Mar

4

Independence and Accountability in Wisconsin’s Lower Courts

Posted by: | March 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment

All methods of judicial selection must account for and balance the competing goals of judicial independence and judicial accountability. Judge James Wynn, Jr. and Eli Mazur described judicial independence as an “immunity from extra-legal pressures” and judicial accountability as the judiciary’s “responsiveness to public opinion.” A method of selection cannot treat independence and accountability as [...]

Print Friendly

Feb

19

Okay, Judge, You Hit Your Number or Die in This Room*

Posted by: | February 19, 2009 | 2 Comments

Much of the attention following yesterday’s decision in Siefert v. Alexander focuses upon the invalidation of prohibitions against judges or judicial candidates belonging to political parties and endorsing partisan candidates for office. That part of Judge Crabb’s decision seems to me, given the balance between regulatory interests and the protection of speech struck by the United States [...]

Print Friendly

Jan

23

I Refer to the Woman with Whom You Have a Child But Who Is Not Your Wife (Hereafter “Baby Mama”)

Posted by: | January 23, 2009 | 3 Comments

Perhaps Professor O’Hear can straighten me out on this. The decision of a divided Court of Appeals setting aside the sentence of Landray Harris has gotten a fair amount of play in the blogs and on talk radio. Put briefly, the court vacated the sentence because the sentencing judge, apparently frustrated by the defendant’s failure [...]

Print Friendly

Nov

3

Spin Doctoring and the Judiciary

Posted by: | November 3, 2008 | 2 Comments

I was extremely lucky to represent Marquette Law School this past Saturday night at the Wisconsin Equal Justice Fund’s Howard B. Eisenberg Lifetime Achievement Award Dinner, and the highlight of the event for me was not only my opportunity to meet and take a picture with Justice Louis Butler, but also to hear him present [...]

Print Friendly

keep looking »