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| Vol. 74, No. 10, October 2001
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Supreme Court Orders
The Wisconsin Supreme Court sets a public hearing for Nov. 13 to consider:
1) petitions and amendments to the statutes to consolidate statutes that
impose sanctions, 2) changes to the Supreme Court Rules regarding eligibility
for appointment as guardian ad litem, and 3) changes to the statutes regarding
publication of court of appeals opinions and regarding petitions for review.
GAL
appointment eligibility
In
the matter of the amendment of Supreme Court Rules chapter 35 - Eligibility
for Appointment as Guardian Ad Litem
Order
01-07
On
April 5, 2001, the Joint Legislative Council filed a petition seeking
to amend Supreme Court Rule 35.01 and add 35.015 and 35.03(1m) relating
to the eligibility and education requirements for appointment as guardian
ad litem for a minor.
IT IS ORDERED that a public
hearing on the petition shall be held in the Supreme Court Room in the
State Capitol, Madison, Wis., on Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2001, at 9:30 a.m.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that
the court's conference in the matter shall be held promptly following
the public hearing on rules petitions 01-07 and 99-07.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that
notice of the hearing be given by a single publication of a copy of this
order and of the petition in the official state newspaper and in an official
publication of the State Bar of Wisconsin not more than 60 days nor less
than 30 days before the date of the hearing.
Dated at Madison, Wis., this
4th day of September, 2001.
By
the court:
Cornelia G. Clark, Clerk of
Supreme Court
Petition
01-07
The Joint Legislative Council,
on the unanimous recommendation of the Special Committee on Guardians
Ad Litem in Actions Affecting the Family, hereby petitions the court to
amend SCR 35.01 and create SCR 35.015 and SCR 35.03 (1m) relating to eligibility
for appointment as guardian ad litem for a minor.
First, the amendments create
new eligibility requirements for attorneys who accept appointments as
a guardian ad litem in proceedings under ch. 767, Stats. As amended, the
rules would require an attorney to have received six hours of approved
guardian ad litem education during the combined continuing legal education
reporting period and the immediately preceding reporting period. Three
of the required six hours would be in family court guardian ad litem education,
as described below. In addition, as under current rules, a court could
also determine that an attorney is qualified for a guardian ad litem appointment.
The provision under which an attorney may accept appointments if he or
she had attended 30 hours of guardian ad litem education would, therefore,
apply only to attorneys accepting guardian ad litem appointments in proceedings
under ch. 48 or 938, Stats. This change is requested because the Special
Committee concluded that attorneys practicing as guardians ad litem should
receive ongoing relevant education in order to effectively represent the
best interests of children in family law disputes.
The second amendment would
specify the elements of guardian ad litem education that an attorney acting
as a guardian ad litem in family court must receive. The rationale for
this change is that, due to the level of conflict in family law cases
for which a guardian ad litem is appointed, the committee concluded that
a guardian ad litem with knowledge about child development and family
dynamics could better formulate a recommendation to serve a child's best
interests.
The committee requests that
SCR 35.01 (intro.) be amended to read:
Commencing on July 1, 1999,
a lawyer may not accept an appointment by a court as a guardian ad litem
for a minor in an action or proceeding under chapter 48,
767 or 938 of the statutes unless one of the following conditions
has been met:
The committee requests that
SCR 35.015 be created to read:
Commencing on July 1, 2002,
a lawyer may not accept an appointment by a court as a guardian ad litem
for a minor in an action or proceeding under chapter 767 of the statutes
unless one of the following conditions has been met:
(1) The lawyer has attended
6 hours of guardian ad litem education approved under SCR 35.03 during
the combined current reporting period specified in SCR 31.01 (7) at the
time he or she accepts an appointment and the immediately preceding reporting
period. At least 3 of the 6 hours shall be family court guardian ad litem
education approved under SCR 35.03 (1m).
(2) The appointing court has
made a finding in writing or on the record that the action or proceeding
presents exceptional or unusual circumstances for which the lawyer is
otherwise qualified by experience or expertise to represent the best interests
of the minor.
The committee requests that
SCR 35.03 (1m) be created to read:
(1m) The board of bar examiners
shall approve courses of instruction or continuing legal education activities
as family court guardian ad litem education that are on the subject of
proceedings under chapter 767 of the statutes; child development and the
effects of conflict and divorce on children; 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. The board of bar examiners may
only approve courses of instruction or continuing legal education activities
that are conducted after July 1, 2001.
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