The State Bar of Wisconsin Appellate Practice Section is putting on a CLE event. It will be here soon.

Is this for you?

Of course, at least in the appellate practice world, the “fun” begins when filing your notice of appeal. Sure there are other issues – is the record complete, identifying issues, transcript tracking – but the notice begins the first step.

And that step is where the appellate practitioner has a choice. Part of this choice is knowing where you’re going.

Indeed, last year mandatory appellate eFiling became the new normal. In a Wisconsin Lawyer^TM  article, authors Sheila Reiff and Marcia Vandercook explain appellate eFiling and what you need to know – from format changes to paper copies to the pilot program that started it all. This article has you covered.

But what about the brief itself? One good place to start is the Appellate Practice Section and available links to past briefs. The section has held a biennial (i.e., fancy word for every other year) competition for the best briefs. The latest winners are about to be announced. Articles on past winning briefs can be found in InsideTrack^TM on WisBar.org, like this one from 2020.

Yet one of the best steps is to hear from others who have traveled the path before you.

Now is your opportunity.

The State Bar of Wisconsin Appellate Practice Section is hosting a day-long CLE session on Appellate Practice in District I on May 19 at the Italian Community Center in Milwaukee.

Attendees will hear from a distinguished group of speakers, including all the judges on Wisconsin’s District I Court of Appeals, staff from the Wisconsin Court of Appeals and from Wisconsin’s Office of Lawyer Regulation, and the clerk of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court and Court of Appeals.

In addition, Chief Judge Diane S. Sykes of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit will deliver an address as our featured lunch speaker.

Topics addressed by our panelists include:

• the District I judges discussing best practices and jurisdictional issues in their court;

• the Court of Appeals staff offering their tips for motions, petitions for leave, writs, and other filings;

• the clerk of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court and Court of Appeals providing an overview of eFiling best practices; and

• the OLR staff discussing the process of avoiding and responding to those OLR grievances commonly faced by appellate practitioners.

A full agenda for the day’s programming is available on the WisBar Marketplace on WisBar.org.

This event is held in-person at the Italian Community Center. It will be a great opportunity to hear from, talk to, and meet our speakers, section members, and other appellate practitioners from the region.

Registration is open now on the State Bar’s website. Go to WisBar Marketplace, and sign in to the State Bar’s website. If you are or become a member of the Appellate Practice Section (for $25 per year), you will be able to register for the discounted section rate of $125.

The State Bar will offer a delayed webcast of the day’s programming through PINNACLE^© if you are not able to attend in-person. Registration options are available on the CLE page on WisBar Marketplace on the State Bar’s website.

Basically, whether it be a step, a leap, or just a preview of the what is to come, the ICC event and other tools are available – and is really where the appellate practice in Wisconsin is happening.

Hope to see you at the CLE event on May 19!

This article was originally published on the State Bar of Wisconsin's Appellate Practice Section Blog, Sua Sponte. Visit the State Bar sections webpage or the Appellate Practice Section webpages to learn more about the benefits of section membership.