Counting an item as an asset (usually a pension) to be divided in property division, then also as income available for maintenance, is generally prohibited as “double counting.”1 However, this rule is not absolute. “When analyzing whether there has been double counting, the focus should be on fairness, not rigid double-counting rules.”2 In the last 60 years, courts have carved out various exceptions: Income from a pension. In a case involving property, maintenance, and child support, income from a pension is available for child support, even when divided as an asset between the spouses. The d ..read more

​ ​​May 7, 2024 – The State Bar of Wisconsin’s Board of Governors in a special meeting today (May 7) approved a motion appointing Dist. 2 Gov. Ryan Billings president-elect for the remainder of fiscal year 2024 (now until June 30, 2024). Billings, who in April was elected to serve as the next State Bar president-elect for FY 2025 (starting July 1, 2024), will instead become president on July 1, 2024. Billings is with Kohner, Mann & Kailas, S.C., Milwaukee. Typically, the president-elect serves a one-year term before serving a one-year term as president. Billings would have taken office as ..read more

May 3, 2024 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court has unanimously turned down a challenge to the state adoption law filed by a man who argued that the law’s requirement that an adoptive parent be married to the child’s parent violates the state and federal constitutions. Justice Rebecca Bradley wrote the opinion for the unanimous court in A.M.B. v. Circuit Court for Ashland County, 2024 WI 18 (April 30, 2024). Justice R. Bradley also wrote a concurrence, which Chief Justice Annette Ziegler and Justice Brian Hagedorn joined. Justice Rebecca Dallet wrote a concurrence, which Justice Ann Walsh Bradley a ..read more

For the first time in U.S. history, overdose deaths have exceeded 100,000 per year and one person dies by suicide every 11 minutes. The U.S. continues to experience a mental health (MH) and substance use disorder (SUD) (behavioral health) crisis of unprecedented proportions. In a powerful move, government agencies reunited to collectively address the long-standing challenges to balancing patient behavioral health treatment needs with health plan and insurer fiduciary financial responsibilities to its insured population by proposing a new rule to enforce the Mental Health Parity and Addiction ..read more

Wis. Stat. section 102.35(3) provides a penalty of up to one year’s wages for employers who fail to rehire injured workers where suitable work is available within their restrictions. In addition to standard claims for permanent damage to the body and compensation for time off work while healing, Wisconsin workers’ compensation law allows for several additional, less common claims, depending on the employee’s situation. One of those claims is the unreasonable refusal to rehire (URR). To establish liability for a URR claim, the employee must show that they: were an employee; sustained a compen ..read more

In a 5-2 decision, the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the due process claims of a Milwaukee police officer who was terminated after posting offensive Facebook posts about then-Milwaukee Bucks basketball player Sterling Brown. May 2, 2024 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court has rejected the due process claims of a Milwaukee police officer whose employment was terminated after he posted offensive Facebook posts about then-Milwaukee Bucks basketball player Sterling Brown. In Andrade v. City of Milwaukee Board of Fire and Police Commissioners, 2024 WI 17 (April 30, 2024), the Wisconsin Supreme Court ..read more

The State Bar welcomed these 24 lawyers for the 2024 Leadership Development Summit. For photos of the event, visit the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Facebook page. May 1, 2024 – State Bar of Wisconsin President Dean Dietrich began volunteering for leadership positions in the State Bar as a young lawyer. And it was through his volunteer work that he found a passion that steered his career path. Volunteering is not aways an easy step to make when you’re first starting out in the profession, Dietrich said, because you are busy building your career and making time for family and your own wellness. B ..read more

​ <iframe src="//open.spotify.com/embed/episode/4mIzM9p6hINEiDgfOpH1Fr?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="152" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy" allowfullscreen></iframe> ​ April 30, 2024 – Attorney Tom Watson, the featured guest in the latest episode of the Bottom Up Podcast​ produced by the State Bar of Wisconsin, knows what it means to reinvent yourself. Tom started his career in broadcast radio. He interviewed big name​s like Bill Clinton, Jesse Jackson, entertainer Red Skelton, and others ..read more

M.E. Thomas (a pseudonym) claims to be three things: female, a lawyer (formerly a law professor), and a psychopath. Her book, Confessions of a Sociopath: A Life Hiding in Plain Sight, chronicles her biography prior to its publication, with special attention to what are considered the emotional deficits of her particular neuro-cognitive framework for interacting with the world. Unlike people considered neurotypical, Thomas has difficulty connecting with her own emotions. She says she always knew that she was different from the people around her. It wasn’t until law school that she began to inv ..read more

May 1, 2024 – Mindfulness and other well-being practices offer evidence-based relief for lawyers dedicated to the maintenance of a healthy mind, according to Prof. Richard J. Davidson, founder and director of the Center for Healthy Minds at U.W. Madison and founder of Healthy Minds Innovations, Inc. “Because of confidentiality issues, lawyers often don’t have many other people to talk to,” said Davidson, who holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Harvard University and published a New York Times Bestseller, “The Emotional Life of Your Brain.” “In this high-stress environment, it’s important for us ..read more