The same day he signed the Ski Hill Liability Protection legislation, Gov. Scott Walker also signed into law 2011 Wis. Act 162, which provides immunity from liability to schools for a death or injury that occurs on school grounds when the death or injury results from a recreational activity held on the school grounds pursuant […]
Bill Providing Immunity to School Boards for Recreational Activities and Immunity for Volunteers Signed into Law
Date Thu, Apr. 5, 2012 - 1:01pm By Hamilton
Governor Signs Ski Hill Liability Protection Bill
Date Thu, Apr. 5, 2012 - 12:48pm By Hamilton
On Monday, April 2, Gov. Scott Walker signed into law 2011 Wis. Act 199, which expands the “assumption of risk” doctrine to protect ski operators who follow certain safety protocols from lawsuits. The assumption of risk doctrine provides that when an individual engages in a potentially dangerous activity, that person does so with the knowledge […]
Barrett Throws His Hat in the Ring & Gets Attacked by AFSCME
Date Wed, Apr. 4, 2012 - 11:08am By Hamilton
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett announced on March 30 that he would enter the Democratic primary in the effort to recall Gov. Scott Walker. Shortly after entering the race, Barrett asked his Democratic opponents to pledge to keep negative ads out of the primary campaign. Days later, AFSCME, which has endorsed Kathleen Falk in the primary, […]
Romney Wins Presidential Primary
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 9:36pm By Hamilton
On April 3rd, Wisconsin voters headed to the polls to vote in the Presidential Preference primary and in various municipal and judicial elections. The final vote will not be certified for a couple of weeks, but unofficial returns show Mitt Romney as the winner in the Wisconsin Primary. At stake in the Wisconsin presidential primary […]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Rules that Default Judgment Was Void Due to Plaintiff’s Failure to Name Proper Corporate Defendant
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 7:48pm By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has issued its decision in Johnson v. Cintas Corp. No. 2, et al., 2012 WI 31, which is the latest in a number of recent cases accepted by the Court dealing with default judgments. (Oral arguments can be viewed on WisconsinEye.) The issue in the case was whether a default judgment is […]
Current and Former Justices Discuss Judicial Turmoil
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 7:38pm By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has been in the news lately, not for its opinions, but for its inner workings and interpersonal conflicts. Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justices Janine Geske and Jon Wilcox were recent guests on Wisconsin Eye’s Legally Speaking, where they offered their opinions on many issues facing the courts. Current Justice Michael Gableman […]
DHS Holding Town Hall Meetings on Virtual PACE Proposal
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 7:12pm By Hamilton
The Department of Health Services is holding public meetings to solicit comments on a draft proposal for Virtual PACE, a program to integrate the care for people who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. More than 120,000 Wisconsin residents receive their health care through a combination of their Medicare and Medicaid benefit. This proposal […]
Federal Court Will Draw Final District Lines
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 7:08pm By Hamilton
The electoral districts that will be in place for the next 10 years will soon be finalized by a panel of federal judges. Every 10 years the state legislature must redraw election boundaries to reflect population shifts and ensure that political districts throughout the state include roughly the same number of voters. The most recent […]
Voter ID Lawsuits Headed to Supreme Court
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 7:01pm By Hamilton
Earlier this year, two different Dane County circuit court judges issued injunctions against the new voter ID law. The Attorney General appealed those decisions, and on March 28, those appeals were certified directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The Second District Court of Appeals said that because the lawsuits raise significant legal issues that affect […]
The Race to Fill Retiring U.S. Senator Kohl’s Seat
Date Tue, Apr. 3, 2012 - 6:58pm By Hamilton
On Nov. 6, 2012, Wisconsin voters will elect a new U.S. Senator to take the place of long-time Sen. Herb Kohl (D), who announced that he was retiring last May. Both parties view this seat as critical to their 2012 strategy, which means much attention, and much money will be focused on this race. The […]