February 12, 2012

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Republicans drop Supreme Court redistricting lawsuit

December 2, 2011 By

Republicans have withdrawn a request for the state Supreme Court to rule on the use of new legislative districts in possible state Senate recall elections.

The lawsuit filed November 21st asked the court to appoint a three judge panel to determine if new Republican-drawn legislative districts would apply to recall elections targeting members of the state Senate. Friday’s filing simply states the request to withdraw is due to issues raised by the court.

The Supreme Court had asked for briefs on a number of issues related to the case, including whether it should be delayed until a federal lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of the new maps is resolved. Justices had also requested filings from other groups seeking to intervene in the case.

The announcement came shortly after a report that Justice David Prosser would not participate in any cases this month because of an undisclosed medical condition. Prosser’s absence could have hurt the chances of the lawsuit succeeding.

An almost identical lawsuit is still pending in Waukesha County.

Filed Under: Legislature, News, Politics & Government Tagged With:

No charges in Supreme Court altercation

August 25, 2011 By

The special prosecutor looking into an alleged physical confrontation between two state Supreme Court justices has decided no charges will be filed.

After reviewing the investigation conducted by the Dane County Sheriff’s Office, Sauk County District Attorney Patricia Barrett says she did not feel there was enough evidence to justify criminal charges. Barrett says she reviewed the case with an eye towards whether she could meet her ethical obligations as a prosecutor in filing charges, and did not feel she could do so. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Crime & Courts Tagged With: ,

Changing the leadership of the Supreme Court

July 8, 2011 By

A state lawmaker is pushing for a change in how the chief justice of the state Supreme Court is selected. The position is currently filled by the member of the court who has served the longest, but a proposed constitutional amendment from state Representative Tyler August (R-Walworth) would have the court vote on its leader instead.

August, a freshman lawmaker from Walworth, says he believes it’s much more appropriate to have justices deciding who should lead the court, rather than just assuming the person who has been there the longest is the most qualified to do the job. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Legislature, Politics & Government Tagged With:

Supreme Court says collective bargaining law legal (VIDEO)

June 14, 2011 By

The State Supreme Court says a Dane County Judge overstepped her authority in halting the Governor’s controversial collective bargaining law. In a 4-3 decision, Justices ruled Judge Maryann Sumi did not have the power to stop a law stripping away the collective bargaining rights of many state workers from taking effect.

Judge Sumi had blocked implementation because of arguments that Republicans violated the open meetings law during passage of the bill. Sumi’s order had prevented Act 10 from being published, which stopped the state from deducting higher pension and benefit contributions from state employee’s paychecks. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Budget, Legislature Tagged With:

Supreme Court rules ATC must pay legal fees

May 26, 2011 By

The state Supreme Court has ordered American Transmission Company to pay a Weston couple’s legal fees in a condemnation dispute. The high court on Thursday issued a decision agreeing with a Marathon County judge who said Mark and Jeanne Klemm were entitled to recover $22,000 in legal expenses. An appeals court had reversed the circuit court decision.

Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson wrote in the court’s unanimous decision that nothing in state law banned landowners like the Klemms from recovering legal fees if they accept a negotiated offer instead of a jurisdictional offer. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Crime & Courts Tagged With:
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