Did You Know? | Abrahamson Anniversary
July 17 marked the 60th anniversary of former Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson’s admission to the practice of law in Wisconsin. Abrahamson was the first woman to serve on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and first woman to serve as its chief justice.
The Shirley S. Abrahamson Legacy Committee has sponsored a website dedicated to honoring Abrahamson’s legacy.
The website, shirleyabrahamson.org, includes a biography, quotations, and copies of opinions written by Abrahamson, who served on the supreme court from 1976 to 2019.
Additionally, the committee has created a traveling exhibit called Justice for All: The Legacy of Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson. The exhibit focuses on causes championed by Abrahamson, including women’s rights, civil rights, and an independent judiciary.
Source: shirleyabrahamson.org
By the Numbers | 6%
– The decrease in the number of authorized wiretaps from 2020 to 2021.
The number of wiretaps authorized by state and federal courts in 2021 decreased by 6% from 2020, according to an annual report.
The report was compiled from data submitted by federal courts and courts in 44 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
According to the report, the average reported length of original authorization was 30 days; that number was unchanged from 2020. Extensions of wiretap authorizations were down 4% from 2020.
The longest federal wiretap included in the report was one authorized by the District of Massachusetts in a narcotics investigation. The wiretap was extended 10 times and lasted 330 days.
The longest state wiretap included came from Nassau, New York. The wiretap, which was authorized as part of a money laundering investigation, was extended 14 times and lasted 1,383 days.
Source: uscourts.gov
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On the Radar | DATCP Pulls Pool Rule
In July, the state Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) abandoned plans to subject swimming pools in short-term rentals to the same regulations as public swimming pools.
Under the proposed rule, the owners of short-term rentals with a pool or hot tub would have been required to obtain a limited-use public pool license to allow renters to use the pool or hot tub.
Among other things, the rule would have required owners to test pool water daily and have their pools undergo an annual inspection.
Some owners of short-term rentals complained that uncertainty about the effect of the proposed rule forced them to delist their pools and lose rentals as a result.
Source: thecentersquare.com
Did You Know? | September 17 is Constitution Day
Constitution Day marks the anniversary of the date in 1787 when the delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the U.S. Constitution. Constitution Day recognizes everyone born in the United States and those who have become citizens by naturalization.
The National Constitution Center has produced Interactive Constitution: Classroom Edition, which includes video lessons, recordings of previous lectures, podcasts, blogposts, essays, and more.
It’s easier than ever to join in the annual commemoration by downloading the Constitution for iPhone app. The app allows you to carry the complete text of the Constitution in your pocket.
Source: constitutionday.com, constitutioncenter.org
Quotable | “This case is about right and wrong.”
– Raffel Systems LLC Executive Chairman Paul Stangl
In June, a federal jury awarded Raffel Systems LLC $106 million in damages in a patent lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
The lawsuit pitted Raffel Systems, which is based in Germantown and has 60 employees, against Man Wah Holdings Ltd. Inc., a Hong Kong-based company with 26,000 employees.
Raffel alleged that Man Wah manufactured and sold counterfeit versions of a patented illuminated cup holder that Raffel manufactures for use in reclining chairs.
Lawyers for Raffel Systems said they were worried that defects in the Man Wah-manufactured cup holders posed a safety risk to consumers.
“As a small company guided by innovation, our intellectual property could not be more important,” Stangl said. “We will continue our fight to show Man Wah and all the world’s biggest companies that intellectual property must be respected.”
Source: PR Newswire
Out There | Black-robed Bobbleheads
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum announced on July 29 that it was issuing a special-edition Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson bobblehead.
Justice Jackson was sworn in as the U.S. Supreme Court’s 116th justice on June 30. She is the first Black woman to serve as a justice on the nation’s highest court.
In conjunction with the release of the Justice Jackson bobblehead, the museum released bobbleheads for the other eight current justices and some former justices, including Thurgood Marshall, Sandra Day O’Connor, William Rehnquist, and Earl Warren.
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is located in downtown Milwaukee.
» Cite this article: 95 Wis. Law. 12-13 (Sept. 2022).
