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Good News about Good Work

Good News about Good Work

On Friday, April 17 the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued an order to reinstate the practice of ghost writing for pro bono attorneys providing brief representation. 

This practice was revoked in the second half of 2019 requiring pro bono attorneys to provide their name and bar number when assisting in pro bono or brief legal advice situations. This requirement diminished pro bono representation throughout the state. Attorneys are less likely to accept pro bono representation and provide drafting assistance to pro se litigants because of the presumption that inclusion of an attorney name and bar number implicates broader representation. This leads to more parties representing themselves, clogging the judicial system and potentially yielding less than positive results for the litigant. This can lead to a myriad of issues for the litigant including but not limited to homelessness, joblessness, disruption of the family unit and general personal turmoil. 

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Probate Bench-Bar Committee Meeting - Key Take-Aways

Key take-aways from April 14 meeting:

  • The procedures for court proceedings with respect to Chapters 51, 54, and 55 will be published and subsequently forwarded to this group.
  • Waivers are key documents for the opening and closing of estates; please obtain them from all interested parties.
  • Temporary guardianship hearings are currently being held on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
  • Permanent guardianship hearings may not be held because of the various in-person statutory requirements.
  • The judges are looking for ways to keep cases moving and getting them closed; they want to avoid calendar congestion when Safer at Home is no longer in effect. 
  • Zoom hearings are to be used whenever possible, if all interested parties may be heard using this technique. 
  • For any hearings scheduled via Zoom, the clerk will send the passcode and other information necessary for participation. 
  • If you have questions or problems, please reach out to the court via the clerks.
  • The deadline for guardianship accountings has been unofficially extended through the end of the month; there is no need to petition for an extension until then. 
  • Please exercise caution in using innovative techniques for the execution of documents such as wills; what the current judges may find acceptable now may not be what the judges a decade from now will find acceptable.
  • Next Bench-Bar Meeting via Zoom will be on May 11th at noon.

Family Law Section Bench-Bar Committee Meeting 4/6 - Key Take-Aways

Top take-aways from the meeting:

• The Milwaukee FCC will have Zoom hearings available as early as next week.If you have a case that was scheduled before the FCC between March 16 – May 15th, and all parties are represented by an attorney, the lawyers may request a Zoom hearing date.To request this please e-mail Commissioner Berrios ([email protected]) and copy the other attorney. This is optional. You are welcome to wait for your adjourned in person hearing date, but if you want to get in sooner via Zoom then e-mail Commissioner Berrios.
• Judges have started to do stipulated divorces by affidavit as previously explained. The judges will discuss later this week what to do about the issue of access to notaries.
• The only in person hearings going on in family court right now are injunctions. 
• Judges and clerks have been getting issued state laptops with remote access. Many clerks are now coming back online and working remotely. 
• Ask the clerks individually about how to handle the Data Sheet. 
• Judges will still try to hear motions to enforce physical placement within 30 days, presumably via phone or video. Attorneys should put as much of the facts as they can in those motions if they want a hearing set. 
• If you have a court date before the FCC with two attorneys that will need to be rescheduled, the attorneys can e-mail Commissioner Berrios to try and arrange a new date. 
• Next Bench Bar Meeting via Zoom will be on May 4th at noon.

MBA: Physical Operations Temporarily Suspended

Message to Members and Visitors: COVID-19 

To help protect the health and safety of all as we navigate COVID-19 (coronavirus), and in light of significant federal, state, and local restrictions on communal gathering, the MBA is temporarily suspending physical operations. The health and well-being of our members and staff—as well as the entire community—is our highest priority.  

We remain dedicated to the success of our members. All staff personnel are available via phone and email. Timely and important education regarding your practice is currently available through live and on demand webinars. Our Lawyer Referral & Information Service (LRIS) will continue to connect the public with participating attorneys to help with their legal problems. Click here for LRIS membership information.
We look forward to continuing to serve you through new and innovative channels. We have no doubt that we will find even more ways to support each other as we face professional and personal challenges going forward. That is the strength of our MBA community. Please do not hesitate to reach out with questions, and thank you for your patience and ongoing support of the Milwaukee Bar Association.

Francis Deisinger, Former MBA President, Appointed to Governor’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council

Reinhart Attorney Appointed to Governor’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council

Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. Shareholder Francis Deisinger has been appointed to the state Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. Deisinger is a member of the Reinhart litigation law practice, and he brings to the council more than 30 years of legal experience. He is also a past president of both the State Bar of Wisconsin and the Milwaukee Bar Association.

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Milwaukee Bar Association Announces Funded Summer Clerkship Opportunity

The legal profession and by extension, the Milwaukee Bar Association (MBA) suffers from a lack of diversity. The MBA has taken steps to make the MBA and the Milwaukee legal community more inclusive. To this end, the MBA participated in the Greater Milwaukee Foundation’s ‘On the Table’ event in 2018 with diversity as the table topic. Representatives from several specialty bar associations reflecting different nationalities, gender and lifestyles came together to discuss the issue of diversity in the legal profession. From this discussion several strategies were employed: 1.) Creation of a Diversity Steering Committee with members from specialty bar legal organizations with memberships of diverse backgrounds; 2.) Amending the MBA mission statement to ensure this important governing document of the MBA both communicates and continuously serves as a reminder to those in leadership that diversity is a core element of what the MBA strives to accomplish; 3.) Hosting programs at the MBA with a transparent and authentic agenda to discuss the challenges that exist in attracting, retaining and embracing a diverse workforce; and 4.) Creating a funded summer clerkship within the federal court to provide the opportunity for law students from a diverse background to have an experience that will enrich and prepare them for a successful future and give them the resume credibility and connections to do so effectively.

The Milwaukee Bar Association (MBA) is pleased to announce in partnership with the Milwaukee Bar Association Foundation, Eastern District of Wisconsin Bar Association (EDWBA) and the U.S. District Court, the opportunity to apply for a funded summer clerkship in the Eastern District of Wisconsin with Magistrate Judge Nancy Joseph. This clerkship was created to provide an opportunity to demonstrate particular care for people of diverse and underrepresented backgrounds to help make the Milwaukee legal community more inclusive.

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