Julie Anne Rich
Supreme Court Commissioner
Wisconsin Supreme Court
Overview
 Structure of State Courts
 How cases get to the Wisconsin Supreme Court
 Petitions for Review
 General strategies for appellate writing
 Pro se litigants & ethical considerations
Wisconsin Circuit Courts
 The Wisconsin circuit courts are the state's trial courts.
There are 249 circuit court judges in Wisconsin.
 The circuit courts are divided into branches with at
least one branch in every county, with the exception of
six counties that are paired off and share judges. The
largest circuit is Milwaukee County with 47 judges.
Wisconsin Court of Appeals
 Hears appeals from the circuit court. Primary function is to
correct errors resulting from misapplication of well-settled
law. The Court of Appeals also issues new rules of law.
 Sixteen judges and four districts




District I serves Milwaukee County
District II is based in Waukesha
District III is based in Wausau
District IV is based in Madison.
 Court of Appeals judges are elected in district wide
elections for 6-year terms and must reside in the district to
be eligible for election.
Wisconsin Supreme Court
 Appellate jurisdiction to review by any case decided by the







lower courts.
Review is discretionary
Authority to hear original actions
Supervisory authority over the lower courts
General administrative responsibility for the court system
Regulatory authority over judges & lawyers.
7 justices, elected in statewide elections to 10-year terms
Chief Justice is the longest serving justice
How do cases get to the
Supreme Court?
 Writs – supervisory, habeas
 Original Jurisdiction
 Petitions for Bypass
 Certifications
 Petitions for Review
 Review is discretionary
Filing a petition for review
DON’T BE LATE
 Wis. Stat. s. 808.10(1): Except as provided in sub. (2) and ss.
809.35(5) and 809.62(1m), the petition for review shall be
filed in the supreme court within 30 days of the date of the
decision of the court of appeals.
 If a motion for reconsideration has been filed, no party may
file a petition for review until after the court of appeals issues
an order on the motion for reconsideration. Wis. Stat. 809.10
(1m)(b)
 Late filing is a basis for a claim of ineffective assistance of
counsel
Supreme Court Review
Willie W. Henderson is
informed by his “jailhouse
lawyer” Shaheed Taalib’din
Madyun that the chances of
being granted review by this
court are very slim, and one
has a better chance of being
struck by lightning or
winning the lottery than he
do of being granted review
on a pro se petition.
However, in spite of the
odds, this pro se petitioner
believes he should be
granted review.
Helpful Resources
 Guide to Appellate Procedure for the Self-
represented.
 Filing a Petition for Review - A Guide to Seeking
Review in the Wisconsin Supreme Court - 2011
 http://wicourts.gov/publications/guides/docs
Know your audience
 Which court?

Fact-finding?

Error Correcting?

Law Developing?
 Face it. You aren’t that funny.
Be Accurate: Strive for absolute accuracy of citation, quotation and factbriefing.
Be Reasonable: “There are combative trial lawyers whose briefs are violently
partisan, and so extravagant in their contentions and assertions as to irritate a
court trying to find a solution to the problem.”(1)
Be Concise: “A . . . brief which cites in miscellaneous form 200-300 cases
and other authorities is a pain in the neck.” Id.
The court must eventually write an opinion, and usually relies heavily on the
briefs. Try to write your brief in a form that will give the appellate court the
most help.
Pro se litigation – challenges for courts
and lawyers
 25 years ago self-representation was rare.
 According to a 1974-76 study of domestic relations cases
in Connecticut, only 2.7 % of these cases involved a selfrepresented litigant.
 Today, self-representation is increasingly the norm,
particularly in domestic relations cases .
 In a 2005 study, the majority of divorce cases involved at
least one pro se litigant: both spouses had counsel in
only 46.4 % of cases. Neither spouse had counsel in a
significant minority (27.7 %) of cases.
Attorney Misconduct & Discipline
Office of Lawyer Regulation. SCR Chs. 21 and 22
The Wisconsin Supreme Court created the lawyer regulation
system to carry out the court's constitutional responsibility
to supervise the practice of law and protect the public from
misconduct by persons practicing law in Wisconsin.
The court has adopted standards of professional conduct for
attorneys. See SCR Chapter 20.
Failure to comply with the court's standards may constitute
misconduct or may be evidence of a medical problem.
Ethics Hotline
State Bar of Wisconsin Ethics Hotline
Attorney Tim Pierce
(608) 250-6168
(800) 444-9404, ext. 6168
Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The ethics hotline is an advisory service that puts you in
touch with an experienced ethics lawyer who can discuss
relevant Rules and case law and provide non-binding
guidance to help Wisconsin lawyers conform their own
conduct to the Rules of Professional Conduct for Attorneys.
Conclusion
A University of Virginia Law School professor said to a
graduating class:
"Three years ago, when asked a legal question, you
could answer, in all honesty, 'I don't know.' Now you
can say with great authority, 'It depends.'"
Best of luck to each of you in your professional future.