In SEIU Local 1 v. Vos (2020 WI 67) the Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld provisions from 2017 Wis. Act 369 and 2017 Wis. Act 370 (including legislative involvement in litigation, legislative review of proposed changes to security in the capitol, temporary suspension of administrative rules, and the codification of the non-deference doctrine from Tetra Tech […]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Declares Safer at Home Order Unenforceable
Date Wed, May. 13, 2020 - 6:28pm By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has issued a 4-3 decision in Legislature v. Palm, declaring the Department of Health Services’s (DHS) “Safer at Home” order unenforceable and immediately striking down the order. The court held that the Safer at Home order is a “rule” that was required to go through statutory rulemaking processes and that the […]
Legislature Files Legal Challenge to DHS “Safer At Home” Order Extension
Date Mon, Apr. 27, 2020 - 11:44am By Hamilton
On April 16, Gov. Tony Evers directed Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Andrea Palm to extend Wisconsin’s Safer at Home Order to May 26 under Emergency Order #28. Less than a week later, the Republican-led Wisconsin Legislature filed a lawsuit challenging DHS’s authority to issue such an order. DHS issued the order under Wis. Stat. §§ […]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Rejects ACLU Coronavirus Lawsuit
Date Mon, Apr. 27, 2020 - 11:32am By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has denied the petition of American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin (ACLU) seeking removal of inmates from Wisconsin correctional facilities to address the COVID-19 pandemic. The lawsuit had argued that Wisconsin prisoners and jail inmates should be released because subjecting prisoners to a likely outbreak of COVID-19 violates the rights to […]
After Court Rulings, In-Person Voting Proceeds in Supreme Court Election
Date Wed, Apr. 8, 2020 - 1:58pm By Hamilton
After rulings from the Supreme Court of the United States and the Wisconsin Supreme Court the night before election day upheld the April 7 date and absentee voting requirements, Wisconsin’s election for state Supreme Court proceeded with few changes. In-person voting was held, and absentee voter requirements were largely the same (though at record high […]
Spring Primary Results: Wisconsin Supreme Court, 7th CD
Date Fri, Feb. 21, 2020 - 2:01pm By Hamilton
In the Feb. 18 spring primary election, Wisconsin voters chose candidates to advance to general elections in two high profile races: Wisconsin Supreme Court and the 7th Congressional District. 7th CD Republican and Democratic primaries were both held in the special election for Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District. U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Weston) resigned from […]
Supreme Court Candidates Debate at Forum
Date Tue, Dec. 3, 2019 - 12:38pm By Hamilton
On Nov. 19, all three candidates running in the spring Wisconsin Supreme Court election met for the first forum of the campaign. The winner of the spring election will serve a ten-year term beginning in 2020. Two candidates – Dane County Circuit Court Judge Jill Karofsky and Marquette University Law School professor Ed Fallone – […]
Supreme Court Holds Oral Arguments in Second Extraordinary Session Challenge
Date Fri, Oct. 25, 2019 - 10:08am By Hamilton
On Oct. 21, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held oral arguments in the second challenge in state courts to the laws passed in the 2018 extraordinary session (2017 Acts 368, 369, and 370). The plaintiffs, Service Employees International Union, Wisconsin Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, American Federation of Teachers-Wisconsin, and Milwaukee Area Service and Hospitality […]
Federal Extraordinary Session Case Dismissed
Date Mon, Oct. 7, 2019 - 4:12pm By Hamilton
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin recently dismissed DPW v. Vos, the federal case challenging the 2018 extraordinary session laws. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin (DPW) had filed a complaint in February seeking to declare the extraordinary session legislation in violation of the U.S. Constitution. DPW alleged that the legislation violates the […]
Legislature Files Lawsuit Against AG to Enforce Extraordinary Session Laws
Date Wed, Aug. 7, 2019 - 10:19am By Hamilton
Republican legislative leadership have filed a petition for original action in the Wisconsin Supreme Court, seeking to enforce sections of the 2018 extraordinary legislation that require legislative oversight of attorney general settlements. The Legislature’s petition and memo in support state that Attorney General Josh Kaul reads the 2017 Act 369 settlement review provisions as not […]