As debate swirls around the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s decision to review maps of election districts, the issue of stare decisis has attracted attention. A Latin term usually translated as “to stand by things decided,” stare decisis means that courts should respect the precedent set by previous rulings in similar cases. Regarding the present case, Rebecca Clarke v. Wisconsin Elections Commission, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and others who endorse the existing maps—approved by the Supreme Court in 2022—argue that revisiting the issue now would offend stare decisis. “I’m not a lawyer,” Vos declared, “but the most important thing in our legal system is the ability to have stare decisis where when a court makes a decision, every time a new person enters the court, you don’t upset everything just because you have new people on the court.”[1][Continue Reading…]
Public Defender Outcomes Compared to the “Field”: An Update for 2019-20 through 2022-23
Four years have passed since our last update on the success rates in Public Defender cases, so it’s time to see if the interim has witnessed any change—which it certainly has.
Following the lead of the first two posts in this series,[1] we’ll weigh the performance of public defenders against that of other defense lawyers in a set of 86 decisions filed from 2019-20 through 2022-23—and also compare these findings with those from the previous decade.[2][Continue Reading…]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Statistics, 1936-37
These tables are derived from information contained in 322 Wisconsin Supreme Court decisions that were turned up in a Nexis Uni search for decisions filed between September 1, 1936, and August 31, 1937. The total of 322 decisions does not include … [Continue reading]
Law School Representation Rates: An Update, 2019-20 through 2022-23
Which law schools groomed the oral advocates who appear at the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and where are these law schools most conspicuously represented among the state’s private firms and state agencies? Since our last post on the topic,[1] four … [Continue reading]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Statistics, 1937-38
These tables are derived from information contained in 303 Wisconsin Supreme Court decisions that were turned up in a Nexis Uni search for decisions filed between September 1, 1937, and August 31, 1938. The total of 303 decisions does not include … [Continue reading]
Oral Arguments: The Most Active Firms, 2018-19 through 2022-23
Today we’ll extend the focus on law firms that prevailed during the fantasy league season by providing an update on the most visible firms over the past five years.[1] Our gaze covers private firms and non-profit organizations,[2] seeking those … [Continue reading]
A new blog on the Wisconsin Supreme Court
For information on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the 2023-24 term, take a look at a new blog by Dustin Brown, a legal-writing professor at the University of Wisconsin’s law school. It’s called SCOWblog and contains, along with posts on the current … [Continue reading]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Statistics, 1938-39
These tables are derived from information contained in 337 Wisconsin Supreme Court decisions that were turned up in a Nexis Uni search for decisions filed between September 1, 1938, and August 31, 1939. The total of 337 decisions does not include … [Continue reading]
The 2022-23 Fantasy League Medalists
This season did not lack surprises. Last year’s runaway champion, the Waivers, tumbled to third place, while the Writs—45 points off the pace a year ago—held off a late charge from the Gavels of the State Public Defender’s Office to claim the … [Continue reading]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Statistics, 2022-23
These tables are derived from information contained in 45 Wisconsin Supreme Court decisions filed between September 1, 2022, and the end of the court’s term in the summer of 2023. The total of 45 decisions omits orders pertaining to various motions, … [Continue reading]
