News Briefs

Major changes to Milwaukee County
small claims procedure effective March 1

As of March 1, plaintiffs in Milwaukee County small claims cases must file a summons and complaint with the clerk of circuit court's office before serving the defendant. Judicial District 1 Rules 390 and 391 - which govern small claims procedures - were revised at the November meeting of the Judicial District 1 Executive Committee.

When the summons and complaint is filed, clerk of court staff will review the documents and assign a case number that is used as a reference by the court and the litigants. Plaintiffs now must appear at the first court date, where they file proof of service on the defendant.

Currently, plaintiffs serve a copy of the summons and complaint on the defendant and return the original paperwork to the clerk of court's office, where the case is assigned a number. Plaintiffs can serve a summons and complaint on a defendant through the mail, which is prohibited after March 1.

The new procedure means pro se litigants can have a member of the clerk of court staff review the documents for errors earlier in the process. The new procedures simplify the process and make cases easier to track, while prohibiting service by mail limits problems in delivering summons and complaints to defendants.

Questions may be directed to the Milwaukee County Clerk of Courts small claims information line at (414) 278-4140. For copies of Wisconsin's local court rules, visit WisBar's Local Court Rules Area.

IRS expands taxpayer service

The Internal Revenue Service is kicking off this year's tax filing season with expanded telephone, walk-in, and online service. Taxpayers now can reach IRS tax assistors 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-800-TAX-1040. Forms and publications can be ordered Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. and Saturday from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. at 1-800-TAX-FORM. For general information, Tele-Tax, at 1-800-829-4477, has recorded tax information on more than 150 topics.

If you're online, you can access the IRS's web site. The site provides tax forms and publications, tax tables, rate schedules, tax regulations, and answers to the most frequently asked questions.

In addition, IRS offices in Green Bay, Madison, Milwaukee, and Waukesha have extended their hours to provide taxpayer service from 8:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.

A new number, 1-877-777-4778, has been established to deal with long-standing, unresolved tax problems. Callers reach trouble-shooters at the Taxpayer Advocate's Problem Resolution Program. "Taxpayers should be able to iron out their problems with the IRS sooner, not later," says National Taxpayer Advocate Val Oveson. "This new toll-free number is a key piece in our mission to improve taxpayer service." Oveson says the Taxpayer Advocate's office, which received new powers under last year's IRS restructuring bill, is an independent voice inside the IRS that champions the rights of taxpayers.

This month on the web...

WisBar premiers employment law and ethics opinions databases

WisBar, the State Bar's award-winning Web site, now offers two new searchable databases for the benefit of Wisconsin attorneys.

WisBar now offers easy access to Wisconsin employment law decisions and grievance awards. The database, presented in partnership with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission (WERC), houses documents dating back to 1989 and is fully searchable by date, decision/award number, tribunal/arbitrator, and employer/respondent.

WisBar also now offers the ethics opinions of the State Bar Standing Committee on Professional Ethics. The committee applies the Rules of Professional Conduct for Attorneys and prior standards in the Code of Professional Responsibility to specific factual situations. While not binding, these opinions are an important source of ethical guidance for Wisconsin lawyers.

Updated unemployment insurance case digest now available

A digest of court decisions in unemployment insurance cases from 1991 through 1997 is available on the Wisconsin Labor and Industry Review Commission's (LIRC) web site. This online digest offers a searchable database of cases categorized by subject, displaying categories of unemployment insurance issues and listing citations of cases that touch on issues including misconduct, labor disputes, suitable work, and voluntary leaving. Each citation is linked directly to the summary of that decision. You also can conduct a word search of the entire LIRC Web site for a term or topic.

The digest also is available in printed form - free - from LIRC by calling (608) 267-9277, or writing P.O. Box 8126, Madison, WI 53707.

The first unemployment case digest was published in 1976; this is the fifth update. The original digest and earlier updates are available from the Wisconsin Department of Administration, Document Sales, at (608) 266-3358. Prices for the original digest and updates vary.

State Bar Indigent Defense Committee
increases awareness of right-to-counsel issues

"It is the dichotomy between the value our profession places upon the right to counsel and the lack of public understanding of this concept that makes this book so important to all practitioners," says State Bar President Susan Steingass.

The book, Promoting the Right to Counsel - Talking Points, Useful Information and the Law Concerning Indigent Defense and the Value It Brings to the Citizens of Wisconsin, was produced by the State Bar's Indigent Defense Committee. The book encourages and educates Wisconsin attorneys on improving the public's understanding of the criminal defense attorney's role in today's society and informs the public about the need to provide effective representation to the indigent.

"Generating public awareness of the poor's right to counsel and the role lawyers play in protecting that right can only enhance the legal profession and its image," says committee chairperson William Retert.

The book provides the background necessary for an attorney to write a letter to a newspaper; give a talk to an organization or class; or appear on radio or television explaining the right to counsel and its importance. It reviews relevant Wisconsin statutory and case law, discusses the constitutional rights to counsel and effective assistance of counsel, the delivery of legal services to the indigent defendant, and the cost - and the public value - of appointed counsel.

A copy of Promoting the Right to Counsel was given to every public defender's office in the state and mailed to local bar associations. The committee would like to see a wide distribution and use of the book. For your free copy, contact the State Bar.

Legal Marketing Association adds Wisconsin chapter

Legal marketers in Wisconsin can enjoy better access to professional support and local industry resources with the formation of a state chapter of the Legal Marketing Association (LMA).

The LMA (formerly known as the National Law Firm Marketing Association) is a nonprofit professional association that provides resources and education, and serves as an intellectual and practical information exchange for its members. LMA members work in law firm marketing departments, as marketing consultants to law firms, or for providers of marketing services and solutions for law firms.

"Many law firm marketing professionals in Wisconsin are members of the Chicago chapter of the LMA, but now those resources are closer to home," says Laura J. Hickey, director of client services for the Milwaukee law firm of Weiss, Berzowski, Brady & Donahue LLP and the chapter's first president.

Since forming last July, the chapter has held several meetings, which include panel discussions on topics like new technology tools for marketing and using "out-of-the-box" thinking when developing marketing plans. The chapter now has 15 members and three corporate sponsors.

For more information on the Wisconsin chapter of the LMA, contact Hickey at (414) 276-5800 or check out the organization's web site.