Justia Wisconsin Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Defendant was convicted of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, third offense. Defendant appealed, arguing that his right of confrontation was violated when the circuit court admitted an expert witness’s testimony that established Defendant’s blood alcohol concentration while he was operating his vehicle. The expert witness based his opinion in part on forensic tests conducted by an analyst at the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, who was unavailable for trial. The court of appeals affirmed the circuit court’s admission of the witness’s testimony. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the witness’s review of Defendant’s laboratory file, including the forensic test results at issue in this case, to form an independent opinion to which he testified did not violate Defendant’s right of confrontation. View "State v. Griep" on Justia Law

After exhausting their administrative remedies, Plaintiffs, six employees of Husco International, Inc., brought this wage claim case behalf of themselves and others similarly situated seeking back pay for unpaid twenty-minute meal breaks taken during the two-year period preceding the filing of their complaint. The union had previously agreed to unpaid meal breaks in every collective bargaining agreement (CBA) negotiated since 1983 at the company’s Waukesha plant. This provision, however, was in conflict with a Department of Workforce Development (DWD) regulation that requires employers to pay employees for meal breaks that are shorter than thirty minutes. The practice was later ended. The circuit court denied both parties’ summary judgment motions. The court of appeals granted summary judgment for Plaintiffs, reasoning that the CBA could not trump the DWD meal-break regulation. The Supreme court reversed, holding that the employees were not entitled, under the DWD regulation, to back pay for the unpaid meal breaks in this case. View "Aguilar v. Husco Int’l, Inc." on Justia Law

After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of one count of engaging in repeated acts of sexual assault of the same child and sentenced to twenty-five years imprisonment. Defendant subsequently filed a post-conviction motion alleging ineffective assistance of counsel and prosecutorial misconduct. The circuit court concluded that the prosecutor’s remarks during closing argument were improper and ordered a new trial in the interest of justice. The court of appeals affirmed on other grounds, concluding that the amended complaint and information charging Defendant failed to provide adequate notice to satisfy Defendant’s due process rights and that the circuit court erroneously exercised its discretion in admitting other-acts evidence. The Supreme Court reversed and remanded to the circuit court with instructions that the judgment of conviction be reinstated, holding (1) the amended complaint and information provided adequate notice and, thus, did not violate Defendant’s due process rights; (2) the circuit court did not err in admitting the other-acts evidence; and (3) the circuit court erroneously exercised its discretion in granting a new trial in the interest of justice because of the prosecutor’s remarks during closing argument. View "State v. Hurley" on Justia Law

An arbitration panel ordered James Graham to pay First Weber Group Inc. for a disputed real estate brokerage commission. Graham failed to pay, and First Weber filed an action to confirm the arbitration award. The circuit court ordered Graham to pay First Weber the commission awarded in the arbitration but denied First Weber’s request for costs and reasonable attorney’s fees, concluding that no costs may be awarded when confirming an arbitration award. Thereafter, First Weber filed an arbitration request with the Realtors Association of South Central Wisconsin, Inc., of which Graham was a member, asking the Association to arbitrate the dispute over costs and reasonable attorney’s fees because judicial confirmation of the commission award was necessary. Graham refused to attend the arbitration hearing. First Weber subsequently filed a petition to compel arbitration of the dispute regarding fees and costs. The circuit court denied the petition, concluding that First Weber’s arbitration request was untimely. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that under the arbitration agreement, Graham’s timeliness and estoppel defenses against arbitration are to be determined in the arbitration proceedings, not by a court in a proceeding to compel arbitration, and therefore, Graham has not overcome the presumption in favor of arbitration. View "First Weber Group, Inc. v. Synergy Real Estate Group, LLC" on Justia Law

The State filed a criminal complaint alleging that Defendant had engaged in two counts of sexual assault of a child under thirteen years of age. Defendant move to dismiss the complaint and information on the grounds that he was not adequately informed of the charges against him because the time periods in which the alleged crimes were committed were too vague. The circuit court granted the motion and dismissed the complaint and information. The court of appeals reversed, relying on State v. Fawcett as a basis for its determination that Defendant received adequate notice as to the charges against him. The Supreme Court affirmed and remanded to the circuit court with instructions to reinstate the complaint and information against Defendant, holding (1) in child sexual assault cases, courts may apply the factors outlined in Fawcett and may consider any other relevant factors necessary to determine whether the complaint and information states an offense to which the defendant can plead and prepare a defense; and (2) the complaint and information in this case provided Defendant adequate notice of the charges against him. View "State v. Kempainen" on Justia Law

Acuity, A Mutual Insurance Company and Chartis Specialty Insurance Company both issued liability policies to Dorner, Inc, a construction company. The Chartis policy was a contractors’ pollution liability (CPL) policy, and the Acuity policy was a Comprehensive General Liability (CGL) policy. Acuity defended and indemnified Dorner in four lawsuits seeking recovery for bodily injury and property damage caused by a natural gas-fueled explosion and fire, which occurred after Dorner’s employees damaged an underground natural gas pipeline during an excavation project. Acuity sought reimbursement from Chartis, asserting that Chartis’s CPL policy provided coverage for Dorner in these lawsuits. The circuit court entered summary judgment in favor of Acuity and ordered Chartis to share with Acuity one-half the cost of defending and indemnifying Dorner. The court of appeals reversed, concluding that the claims asserted against Dorner were not covered under the CPL policy. The Supreme Court reversed and remanded to the circuit court to reinstate the judgment in favor of Acuity, holding that Chartis’s CPL policy covered Dorner’s liability arising from the natural gas-field explosion and fire. View "Acuity v. Chartis Specialty Ins. Co." on Justia Law

The Milwaukee City Housing Authority brought an eviction action against Defendant, who lives in federally subsidized housing, because Defendant violated the terms of his lease by engaging in “drug-related criminal activity” - i.e., smoking marijuana inside his apartment. Defendant argued that he could not be evicted because Wis. Stat. 704.17(2)(b) required the notice of eviction to provide him with an opportunity to remedy his lease violation. The circuit court issued a restitution order and writ of eviction. The court of appeals reversed. The Supreme Court reversed the court of appeals, holding that 42 U.S.C. 1437d(1)(6) preempts the right-to-remedy provision of section 704.14(2)(b) when a public housing tenant is evicted for engaging in “drug-related criminal activity” within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. 1437d(1). View "Milwaukee City Housing Auth. v. Cobb" on Justia Law

Based on evidence obtained from a search of Defendant’s home, the State charged Defendant with possession with several drug-related offenses. Defendant moved to suppress the evidence obtained from his home, contending that the warrant was unlawfully obtained because it was based on information gained from a prior illegal search. Specifically, Defendant contended that the police officers needed, but did not have, a warrant to conduct the dog sniff, and because the warrant relied on an affidavit detailing the dog’s alert to the presence of drugs, the warrant was invalid and the evidence must be suppressed. The circuit court denied the motion. While Defendant’s appeal was pending, the United States Supreme Court issued Florida v. Jardines. Based on Jardines, the court of appeal determined that Defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights were violated when the officers brought the drug-sniffing dog to his home without a search warrant. The court nevertheless affirmed the conviction because the police subsequently obtained a search warrant upon which they relied in good faith. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the good faith exception to the exclusionary rule applied because the evidence at issue was obtained in objectively reasonable reliance on a warrant issued by a detached and neutral magistrate. View "State v. Scull" on Justia Law

Defendant was charged with one count of first-degree intentional homicide. At trial, Defendant indicated that he wished to testify. Defendant insisted that he would inform the jury of allegedly wrongful prior conviction for armed robbery. The circuit court decided that Defendant’ proposed testimony concerning the prior conviction was irrelevant. Defendant, however, promised that, if permitted to testify, he would disobey the circuit court’s evidentiary ruling. The circuit court determined, over timely defense objection, that Defendant forfeited his right to testify at trial by exhibiting stubborn and defiant conduct that threatened both the fairness and reliability of the criminal trial process and the preservation of dignity, order and decorum in the courtroom. The jury subsequently convicted Defendant of first-degree intentional homicide. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction, holding (1) the circuit court did not err in denying Defendant the right to testify, as the court’s forfeiture determination was not arbitrary or disproportionate to the purposes it was designed to serve; and (2) even if the court assumed error, such error was subject to harmless error analysis, and in this case, the assumed error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. View "State v. Anthony" on Justia Law

Wisconsin’s notice-prejudice statutes provide that an insured’s failure to furnish timely notice of a claim as required by the terms of a liability policy will not bar coverage unless timely notice was reasonably possible and the insurer was prejudiced by the delay. Plaintiffs sued their former attorney (“Attorney”) for legal malpractice. Attorney’s professional liability insurer ("Insurer") intervened in the lawsuit and sought summary judgment declaring that the insurance policy it issued to Attorney did not cover Plaintiffs’ suit. At issue in this case was whether the notice-prejudice statutes superseded Insurer’s policy requirement that claims be reported during the policy period. Plaintiffs’ claim against Attorney was made during the policy period, but Attorney did not report the claim during the policy period. The circuit court granted the Insurer’s motion for summary judgment, but the court of appeals reversed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the notice-prejudice statutes did not supersede Insurer’s policy requirement that claims be reported within the policy period. View "Anderson v. Aul" on Justia Law