Wisconsin Civil Justice Council 

As fall session approaches in the Wisconsin Legislature, several notable bills are being circulated and introduced, including the reintroduction of qui tam and bills creating new causes of action. Also in this edition of the WCJC newsletter, Justice Hagedorn is sworn into the Supreme Court and the latest from the Court of Appeals. 

Please contact  Andy Cook or Paige Scobee  if you have any questions on these or other civil justice matters.

Please feel free to forward this newsletter to others who may benefit from the information it contains.

Qui Tam Proposal Circulating in Wisconsin Legislature

A proposal is currently circulating in the Wisconsin Legislature that would restore a private individual's ability to bring a qui tam claim on behalf of the government against a person who makes a false claim for Medicaid. WCJC helped repeal Wisconsin's previous qui tam law in 2015 and will work hard to ensure that it is not enacted back into law.
 

Employment Bills Introduced in Wisconsin Legislature

This session, Wisconsin lawmakers have introduced several bills that would create new legal causes of action against employers and could be costly to Wisconsin businesses if enacted.
 
 
Justice Brian Hagedorn Sworn Into Wisconsin Supreme Court

Newly elected Justice Brian Hagedorn was sworn into the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Aug. 1, 2019, with his public investiture and swearing in ceremony held at the state capitol this week.
 
Justice Hagedorn's swearing in shifts the court from a 4-3 to 5-2 conservative majority. The next Supreme Court election will occur in April 2020, with current Justice Daniel Kelly running for reelection. (Read more about the 2020 candidates.)
 
 
Legislature Files Lawsuit Against AG to Enforce Extraordinary Session Laws

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 provide legislative oversight to attorney general settlements.
 
 

COURT OF APPEALS
Subtitle
Month Year
Convenience Store Leasing & Management v. Annapurna Marketing (Frustration of Purpose)

In Convenience Store Leasing & Management v. Annapurna Marketing (2017AP1505), the Court of Appeals District II held defendants could not prove frustration of purpose excused breach of their fuel supply agreement with the plaintiff.
 
 
Eco-Site, LLC v. Town of Cedarburg (Conditional Use Permit for Cell Tower)

In Eco-Site, LLC v. Town of Cedarburg (2018AP580), the Court of Appeals District II upheld a town's denial of a conditional use permit for a cell tower.
 
 
Garfield Baptist Church v. City of Pewaukee (Municipal Fees)

In Garfield Baptist Church v. City of Pewaukee (2018AP673), the Court of Appeals District II held that entities must challenge municipal sewerage and storm water fees with the Public Service Commission (PSC), not in circuit court. Furthermore, the burden of proving that municipal fees do not bear a "reasonable relationship" to the services provided should be on the challenger, not the defendant municipality.
 
 
Papa v. DHS (Administrative Rules)

In Papa v. DHS (2016AP2082/2017AP634), the court held that a challenge to a Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) policy failed because the policy was not an administrative rule with the force of law.
 
 
Tarrant v. DHS (Medicaid Eligibility)

In Tarrant v. DHS (2018AP1299), the Court of Appeals District II held that testamentary trusts are countable unearned income for determining Medicaid eligibility.
 
 
Secura Insurance v. Super Products, LLC (Economic Loss Doctrine)

In Secura Insurance v. Super Products, LLC (2018AP1600), the Court of Appeals District II held that the economic loss doctrine bars recovery for damage to contracted property, even if there was injury to other property.
 
 

August 15, 2019

Written and compiled by 

Paige Scobee

Hamilton Consulting Group
Wisconsin Civil Justice Council 
10 E. Doty Street 
Suite 500 
Madison, WI 53703
(608) 310-5312

News Clips
Politics
Tony Evers calls on Donald Trump to end trade war : Wisconsin State Journal, August 12, 2019.
Expert: More than 500 Wisconsin elections clerks use outdated systems : Wisconsin State Journal, August 10, 2019.
 


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