June 6, 2024 – Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Annette Ziegler has appointed a committee to address the continuing shortage of attorneys across Wisconsin. The Attorney Retention and Recruitment Committee was announced on June 6.
The committee will be made up of the deans of Marquette University Law School and the University of Wisconsin Law School, State Bar of Wisconsin representatives, and attorneys and judges from across Wisconsin. Chief judges from each of the state’s nine judicial administrative districts will help lead the committee’s work.
According to the press release, the number of active attorneys in Wisconsin has shrunk by more than 4% since 2019. The trend is most acute in the state’s rural counties, where the decrease over the past four years amounts to 7%. Additionally, enrollment in the state’s two law schools has also declined over the past five years.
Jeff M. Brown , Willamette Univ. School of Law 1997, is a legal writer for the State Bar of Wisconsin, Madison. He can be reached by
email or by phone at (608) 250-6126.
“The Chief Judges in each district recognize the importance of collaborating with the law schools, the State Bar, and attorneys to address this shortage,” said Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Jason Rossell, chief judge of the state’s Second Judicial Administrative District and chair of the Committee of Chief Judges, said in the press release.
“Each day in court, trial judges face the challenges of finding attorneys for unrepresented individuals in criminal cases,” Rossell said. “The delays caused by the shortage cause problems throughout the system, including delays in trials, lengthy pretrial incarceration, losing treatment options, and delayed closure for victims and witnesses.”
Some counties, including seven in northern Wisconsin, lack a single attorney who’s certified to take a case when State Public Defender attorneys are conflicted out or can’t represent a particular client for some other reason.
“In the northwestern quadrant of the state, the attorney shortage has reached crisis levels,” said Barron County Circuit Court Judge Maureen Boyle, chief judge of the state’s Tenth Judicial Administrative District.
“In Barron County, there are no local lawyers who regularly accept public defender appointments, and we must rely on remote technology to ensure representation for those facing criminal charges.”
The Attorney Retention & Recruitment Committee will engage stakeholders in the legal community to study the attorney shortage issue, then make recommendations to address the problem.
“The Chief Judges are thankful for the leadership of Chief Justice Ziegler and the Wisconsin Supreme Court in addressing this problem,” Chief Judge Rossell said.
