Since U.S. Senator Herb Kohl announced he would not seek reelection there has been much speculation about who would seek to replace him. The field of likely candidates continues to grow, and both parties are expected to hold primary elections. Likely Democratic CandidatesThe big news on the Democratic side is who is not running. Former […]
State Court Challenges to Legislatively Enacted Tort Reforms
Date Wed, Aug. 17, 2011 - 3:51pm By Hamilton
The Summer 2011 edition of the Federalist Society’s State Court Docket Watch features an article co-authored by Hamilton Consulting lobbyist and attorney Andrew Cook and Great Lakes Legal Foundation staff attorney Emily Kelchen. State Court Challenges to Legislatively Enacted Tort Reforms provides a summary of recent state supreme court cases in which opponents of civil […]
Senate Remains 17-16
Date Wed, Aug. 17, 2011 - 2:47pm By Hamilton
The last of the nine Senate recall elections are over and the final result is a 17-16 Republican majority. Democratic incumbent state Sen. Robert Wirch and Jim Holperin held their seats in recall elections held yesterday, August 16th. In the 12th Senate District, incumbent Jim Holperin (D-Conover) defeated challenger Kim Simac (R-Eagle River) by a […]
Republicans Hold Control of Wisconsin Senate
Date Wed, Aug. 10, 2011 - 9:38am By Hamilton
Wisconsin has been in the national spotlight leading up to yesterday’s recall elections. Besides the six Republicans on yesterday’s ballot, two Democratic incumbents face recalls next week. A third Democrat survived a recall attempt last month. Below are the results of the races for six incumbent Republican senators. The Republicans will continue to control the […]
Fairly Allotting Liability Among Defendants
Date Tue, Aug. 2, 2011 - 2:58pm By Hamilton
Hamilton Consulting lobbyist and attorney Andrew Cook gave a presentation entitled Fairly Allotting Liability Among Defendants at the August 2, 2011 meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in New Orleans. The presentation discusses the different variations of joint and several liability, using Wisconsin as an example of how the law has changed over […]
Recall Elections Update
Date Mon, Jul. 25, 2011 - 1:14pm By Hamilton
Wisconsin residents are headed to the polls this summer to cast their ballots in an unprecedented number of recall elections. Nine Wisconsin Senators are being recalled largely in response to Governor Walker’s successful attempt to strip many collective bargaining rights from public workers. Three Democrats are being targeted after fleeing the state for three weeks […]
Republican Legislature Passes Redistricting Plan
Date Mon, Jul. 25, 2011 - 1:13pm By Hamilton
The Senate and Assembly approved legislation which redraws Wisconsin’s political boundaries for the state’s 8 congressional districts, 33 Senate Districts, and 99 Assembly Districts. The Legislature is charged every ten years with redrawing the lines based on population data from the U.S. Census. Wisconsin’s population increased 300,000 over the past decade. There has been growth […]
Transparency in State Spending
Date Tue, Jul. 19, 2011 - 9:15am By Hamilton
A measure in the state budget passed last month requires the state to post online every purchase of $100 or more. The new requirement greatly expands the state’s reporting requirements and will offer the public a closer look at state expenditures. The state must post the grant or contract for each expense, the agency doing […]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Limits Personal Jurisdiction over Foreign Corporations
Date Fri, Jul. 1, 2011 - 12:00am By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court today issued a decision today, Rasmussen v. General Motors et al., 2011 WI 52, which places limits on lawsuits filed against foreign corporations in Wisconsin. Although the case caption cites General Motors, the specific issue in this case was whether Wisconsin had personal jurisdiction over Nissan Japan. The lawsuit involved […]
Governor Walker Signs Budget Into Law; Vetoes 50 Provisions
Date Tue, Jun. 28, 2011 - 12:00am By Hamilton
Gov. Walker signed into law the two-year budget on June 26. Over 50 percent of the general funds were devoted to local government services such as public schools and public safety. Below are a few of the major highlights of the budget bill: Limits growth in property taxes on the median value home to less […]