Wisconsin Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

You will need to obtain a complete copy of your dental records and have them reviewed by a personal injury (malpractice) lawyer. They will consult with an outside dentist or periodontist to determine if you have a viable claim.  The statute of limitations for medical malpractice (including dental) in the State of WI is three years. Failure to file a  lawsuit within three years from the date of the occurrence would forever bar your claim. If the treatment occurred approaching nearly three years ago, time is of the essence.... Read More

You can file a contempt motion on your own if your ex isn't paying child support, or there isn't a repay court order on the back support owed. Someone asked a similar question the other day on whether child support arrears survives the death of the payer. While  I am not 100% certain of the answer, I would think the arrears survive the death of the payer, and would be a claim against their estate, assuming they have any type of an estate to collect from. There is a statute of limitations for the collection of child support arrears in Wisconsin. I wrote a blog discussing that very issue that you can read at our law firm's web site, under family law issues.... Read More

Temporary divorce hearings are designed to set temporary court orders while a couple go through a divorce. The purpose of the hearing is not to allocate or divide up property or to grant the divorce. The court sets orders as to custody, placement, child support, maintenance, health insurance, use of vehicles, homestead, bank accounts and payment of debts, among other issues. Not every couple need an initial hearing. They are routinely required where there are minor children, mostly focusing on children's issues, of custody, placement and child support.  Whether witnesses are allowed is dependent on the county you are in and the particular court commissioner. Most initial first hearings do not involve testimony from the parties or from witnesses. The reason you are asking for a witness to appear and testiy will need to be compelling. The court may require you to provide an offer of proof of what that person what your witnesses would be testifying to, before deciding whether they should be allowed to present testimony or not. The court usually sets 30-45  minutes of time for the hearing. Following arguments by the parties, or their attorneys if represented and after reviewing your repsective finacnial information such as tax returns, check stubs and financial disclosure statements, the court will make decisions and orders and you will leave court that day with a signed written court order in your hand. You need to have a firm idea on what you are asking the court to do, if you are the one asking for the hearing. Depending on the county you are in, the hearing may be open to the public. In other counties, the courtrooms are very small and the court may limit attendance to only the parties and their attorneys, where applciable.... Read More

The answer to your question is that "it depends." If the other party has primary placement of the children and you are paying the full percentage guideline for support, usually, variable costs doesn't kick in. If you have a shared or equal placement arrangement and the amount of support you are paying is using the shared placement formula (which considers your income, their income and the percentage of time you both spend with the children), than variable costs needs to be allocated between the parties and that may include school supplies and lunches, which is what your question referred to. Medical expenses is a separate line item regardless of child support, and both parents are expected to provide health insurance (one or the other) and help with the cost, as well as any uninsured medical and health expenses for the minor children.... Read More

Depending on what county the case is pending in, most temporary first hearings on a divorce or separation are limited to 30-45  minutes of time. That means in a very short period of time, the court has to make important decisions on custody, placement, child support, maintenance (if an issue in the case), use of personal household items, which cars to drive, which bank accounts to use, payment of debts, and other finacnail issues. The corut hearing is usually held informally, meaning there is no court reporter in the room and the parties are not placed under oath. The parties make arguments to the court (or their attorneys make the arguments if they are represented), on each of the issues in the case and what relief they are seeking. It depends on the County, in some counties, the courtrooms are large enough to allow spectators or the public to attend. In other counties, the rooms are very small and usually, only the parties are allowed into the courtroom, along with their attorneys, of course, if they are represented. You can bring witnesses, but it is discretionary on the part of the court whether to allow them to testify. The general answer is no, don't expect the court to allow witnesses to testify at the first initial hearing. You will need to make an offer of proof as to why the witness testimony is compelling to your case. If you have a witness there to tell the court you are a great parent, they are not going to allow the witness to testify. That is not compelling. If you have a witness there to tell the court that they have seen your spouse physically abuse the children, that would be compelling and urgent enough, that the court may want to hear from the witness. The court will make a decision on all temporary issues and you will leave with a written court order that day.... Read More

if your husband wasn’t divorced from his first wife, than you two are not lawfully married. Your remedy would be to file for an annulment. Check the Wisconsin circuit court access site to check the history of his prior divorce case to see if it was completed, assuming it was a Wisconsin case.... Read More

It would be hard to sell the house without a clear priority among liens. There are some ways of managing it which an experienced real estate lawyer could tell you. Any buyer might not be patient enough to wait for the untangling. I don't see the consistency between your saying that the house sale should net some surplus, and your saying that the sale would be 'short.'... Read More

Medical Malpractice cases in Wisconsin are exceedingly difficult to pursue and win. They are practically non-existent anymore. I wrote a blog at our law firm's web site under personal injury issues last year, walking through the difficulties of pursing the case. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel also did an excellent story on the complexities last year, that you can google and read. In order to pursue the case, you would have to have significant permanennt injuries to make it worth a lawyer's time to pursue. If you feel strongly that you were harmed and may have to live with the consequences the rest of your life, secure all of your medical and hospital records relating to the incident. Once you have the records, sit down with an experienced personal injury lawyer who handles malpractice claims and let them review your file. If they believe there was malpractice, they will consult witih a medical specialist to determine if you have a viable claim. The statute of limitations to sue for medical malpractice in the state of Wisconsin is THREE years. Failure to file a lawsuit within three years from the date of your occurrence, will forever bar your claim.... Read More

Medical Malpractice cases in Wisconsin are exceedingly difficult to pursue and win. I wrote a blog on the difficulties at our law firm's web site last year under personal injury issues. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel did an excellent series on medical malpractice difficulties in Wisconsin as well, and you can google to read. I would say contacting your prior doctor and complaining is not the right step. Instead, if you feel that there was negligence on the part of the prior doctor, obtain copies of all of your medical and hospital records dealing with your case. Once you have those records, you should sit down with an experienced personal injury lawyer who has handled medical malpractice cases. They will review your records and if they feel there is some merit to the claim, will consult an outside medical expert to review your records to determine if you have a viable claim. The statute of limitations in Wisconsin for suing for medical malpractice is three years. Failure to file a lawsuit within three years from the date of the occurrence, would forever bar your claim.... Read More

The petitioner (person requesting the restraining order) presents their case first. They get to testify. When they are done testifying, you as the respondent, have a right to cross examine the petitioner. When that is completed, the petitioner can present other evidence, such as witnesses, if there are any. Any other witnesses testifying also allows you the right to cross examine those witnesses. When petitioner rests, you are allowed to present your case. You certainly are allowed to take the witness stand and testify in your own defense, if you chose to do that, and are subject to cross examination by the petitioner. You can also present witnesses as well, depending on how much time the court has allocated for the hearing. The typical running time is 30-45 minutes, but thay may vary from county to county. At the conclusion of all the testimony, the court will make a decision on the request for the restraining order and if the order should be granted, the length of time the order remains in effect. Most of the time, expect the court will issue the maximum time allowed under the statute.... Read More

Under LAWYERS.COM rules, we are not allowed to offer our services or recommend a lawyer to you. You will need to search the data base of attorneys in your area here at the web site to find a divorce/family lawyer that can answer your questions on custody. I am  not sure I get the connection however, between your wife having a pscyhological evaluation and asking for a restraining order against her. The only restraining orders a person can apply for in Wisconsin are either (a) harassment (b) domestic violence or (c) child abuse.  ... Read More

Proving that the other parent is an alcoholic in court can be difficult. You will need objective evidence; drunken driving convictions; disciplinary issues at work; prior alcohol or drug treatment. Absent that, when you allege they drink too much, they will deny it or claim you are blowing things out of proportion. Your children cannot typically be called as witnesses (that is rarely allowed in Wisconsin). If there are family or friends who would come to court to testify, that could also help your cause. Certainly, if in fact they have a serious alcohol dependency issue, it can affect the placement of your children and court orders can be entered to prohibit the consumption of alcohol while the children are in their care.... Read More

The answer to your question is no. It is barred, pursuant to s. 885.365(1), unless you were informed that the recording was being made, you consented expressly during the recording, and were informed that such recording could be used in court proceedings.  You would be best served by considering hiring a lawyer to help you.... Read More

The answer is no, if it is a civil court proceeding. Under Wis. Stat s. 885.365 (1) evidence obtained as the result of the recording a communication is "totally inadmissible" in civil cases, except when the party is informed that the converrsation is being recorded and that evidence from said recording may be in used in a court of law.... Read More

Wiscosin is a "one party" state for purposes of being able to record or wiretap. It is not necessarily illegal under s. 968.31 and 968.27. At the same time, pursuant to s. 885.365 (1), it cannot be used in a court room during a civil case. Such evidence is totally inadmissible. The only way it gets admitted is if the person is informed that they are being recorded, they give their consent and are informed that the recording may be able to be used in court proceedings. ... Read More

Under s. 968.31 and 968.27, it is not necessarily illegal for an individual who is a party to or has consent from a party of an in person or electronic communication to record and or disclose the content of said communication, unless the person is doing so for the purpose of committing a tortious or criminal act.  Under s. 885.365 (1), evidence obtained as the result of the recording a communication is "totally inadmissible" in civil cases, except where the party is informed that the conversation is being recorded and that evidence from said recording may be used in a court of law.... Read More

Some attorneys offer a free consultation. Attorneys that charge for an initial consultation will vary on the amount that they charge, depending on their experience and how busy they are. I would say in this area, (Milwaukee, WI), it would not be unusual to spend $200 to $300 an hour for the first consultation. What type of a case do you have?... Read More

One would need more information from you to even remotely answer your question. 1. Who has legal custody of your child (i.e. is there a ciourt order?) 2. In whose custody is the child now? 3. Who won't give the child back to you (i.e. his father, or the state that the father is in)? Is there ongoing custody litigation involving your son and  if so, in what state? Generally, under the Uniform Child Custody Act, you can't abduct a child and move them to a new state to create custody jurisdiction. It is unclear from your facts exactly how the child was taken from you, where he is and why you are having trouble getting your child back.... Read More

If this is a Wisconsin case and if this was a public school, you would have had to have provided 120 days written notice of the claim, personally served on the appropriate governmental entity to pursue the claim. While there are some exceptions under the statute, since this happened last year, any attempt on your part now legally to pursue the case and file a lawsuit will be met with a motion to dismiss by the school. This assumes also that you even have an underlying case to prove negligent supervision on the part of the school staff in releasing your child to some third party.... Read More