Legislative Watch
Tweaking Wisconsin's Guardian ad Litem System
Pending Legislation
A Special legislative Committee proposes tweaking
Wisconsin's gal system to improve it where possible. The proposed
legislation addresses GAL compensation, fee collection, judicial and gal
educational programming, and other issues.
by Mark Gundrum & Kim Plache
BEGINNING LAST FALL, REP. Mark Gundrum and Sen. Kim Plache
led a 19-member committee in a review of Wisconsin's Guardian ad Litem
(GAL) system. This Special Committee on GALs was directed to study the
appointment, role, supervision, training, and compensation of Gals; make
legislative recommendations; and petition the Wisconsin Supreme Court
regarding proposed changes. The review was not intended as a major
overhaul of Wisconsin's GAL system, but rather as a tweaking to improve
the current system where possible.
After hearing testimony from invited guests with a wide array of
experience with Wisconsin's GAL system, the committee concluded that
Wisconsin's present system works well, but could be improved in several
ways.
Proposed Legislation
![Rep. Mark Gundrum](/SiteCollectionImages/WisconsinLawyer/2001/04/gundrum.jpg) |
![Sen. Kim Plache](/SiteCollectionImages/WisconsinLawyer/2001/04/plache.jpg) |
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Rep. Mark Gundrum, U.W. 1994, chairs the Assembly
Judiciary Committee, is vice chair of the Assembly Criminal Justice
Committee, and a member of the Civil Trial Council of Wisconsin. Gundrum
(R-New Berlin) represents the 84th Assembly District.
Sen. Kim Plache
(D-Racine) is a member of the Joint Finance Committee. She represents
the 21st Senate District.
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GAL Compensation. Legislation is being advanced to
clarify the current statutory provision governing GAL compensation to
provide that when parties are ordered to pay GAL compensation, they may
be ordered to pay the GAL directly, pay into an escrow account from
which the GAL will be paid, or reimburse the county if the county has
paid the GAL's compensation. The legislation also permits a court to
order an income withholding pursuant to Wis. Stat. 767.265 or a separate
judgment, for the amount of the reimbursement in favor of the county or
the GAL and against the responsible party.
Parenting Plans and Mediation. The proposed
legislation directs clerks of court to provide instructions for
completing and filing a parenting plan under Wis. Stat. 767.24(1m),
without charge, to any person filing a petition or receiving a summons
in an action affecting the family. Unless the court orders otherwise,
parties would be required to file a parenting plan with the court within
60 days after the court waives the requirement to attend mediation or 60
days after the mediator notifies the court that the parties have not
reached an agreement. The legislation also requires the mediator to
review the nonfinancial provisions of the parenting plan with the
parties at the initial mediation session.
Fee Collection. The legislation permits a court (or
family court commissioner) to order an income withholding to collect
fees for mediation services and custody and placement studies.
Educational Programs. The legislation requires the
court, during the pendency of an action involving a minor child, to
order the parties to attend an educational program that includes at
least four hours of instruction or training in any of the following
areas that the court deems appropriate: effects of divorce on a child;
working together in the child's best interest; parenting or coparenting
skills; consequences of stipulating to a custody and placement
arrangement and of resolution of disputes by the court; available
mediation; the provisions of section 767.24, Stats. (parenting plans,
custody, and physical placement); the appointment, duties, and
responsibilities of Gals in representing the child's best interest; the
financial expenses of representation by an attorney, mediation, custody
and placement studies, fees and expenses of a GAL, including expert
witnesses; costs of mental or physical examinations; and any other
costs, fees, or expenses that may be incurred during litigation.
Under the proposal, however, parties may not be required to attend
the program, or may instead be required to attend separate sessions of
the program, if the court finds that attending would cause undue
hardship or endanger the health or safety of one or both of the parties.
Absent such a finding, the court may require attendance at the
educational program as a condition of granting the final judgment or
order. The court also may refuse to hear a custody or physical placement
motion of a party who refuses to attend a program that he or she has
been ordered to attend.
Other Committee Recommendations
The committee sent a letter to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee,
requesting an audit of: 1) state compensation to counties for the cost
of GAL services for indigent persons; 2) recoupment by counties of
payments for GAL services from persons responsible for those costs; 3)
implementation and funding of family court counseling services; 4) the
cost savings, if any, associated with timely and effective mediation; 5)
whether low-income families receive mediation at a later stage of the
process because they are unable to pay an up-front charge for the
services; and 6) whether flat fees for mediation and custody services
should be replaced by sliding scale fees.
The committee wrote to the Wisconsin Supreme Court's Judicial
Education Committee, recommending that the committee include in its
judicial education programs information on the importance of judges: 1)
clearly communicating their expectations to the GAL; 2) ensuring that
the parties understand that the GAL is appointed by the court to
represent and advocate for the child's best interests; and 3) asking the
GAL about actions taken and work performed in the matter and providing
feedback to the GAL on his or her performance, while respecting supreme
court rules regarding ex parte communications.
In addition, the committee requested that the State Bar of Wisconsin
consider providing continuing legal education for Gals on: 1)
maintaining impartiality and avoiding assessing facts or taking a
position based on personal biases such as gender, socio-economics,
religion, or race; 2) mental health and other similar issues for
children and families experiencing divorce; and 3) skills in
interviewing children. The committee also requested that the State Bar
prepare a videotape to inform parties of the steps involved in a
contested custody or visitation dispute and what they can expect
financially. The videotape should clearly explain the role of the GAL to
the parties, while emphasizing how conflict in the process can impact
the parties and their children. The committee further requested that the
State Bar coordinate or facilitate mentoring for new attorneys
practicing as Gals
The committee also petitioned the Wisconsin Supreme Court, requesting
that the court amend the Supreme Court Rules relating to Gals by
creating new eligibility requirements for attorneys who accept GAL
appointments, and requiring the Board of Bar Examiners to approve
continuing legal education (CLE) courses for family law Gals that cover
specified subjects. As amended, the rules would require that family law
Gals attend six hours of GAL CLE during the combined CLE reporting
period and the immediately preceding reporting period, three of which
would be in family court GAL education. As under current rules, a court
also could determine that an attorney is otherwise qualified for a GAL
appointment.
Family court GAL courses would have to address: proceedings under
chapter 767; child development and the effects of conflict and parental
alienation on children; children's mental health issues in divorcing
families; the dynamics and impact of family violence; and sensitivity to
various religious backgrounds, racial and ethnic heritages, and issues
of cultural and socio-economic diversity.
Wisconsin Lawyer