Article VII Amicus Curiae Briefs Briefs
amicus curiae may be authorized and filed in the name of the State Bar of Wisconsin or one of its sections or divisions pursuant to the following guidelines, policies and procedures:
Section 1. State Bar of Wisconsin Briefs.
(a)
Authorization. The Board of Governors may authorize the preparation and filing of a State Bar of Wisconsin brief amicus curiae by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of those members present and voting
(b)
Appropriate Cases. Briefs
amicus curiae may be authorized only when consistent with the purposes of the State Bar, as expressed in SCR 10.02(2).
(c) Preparation and Filing of Briefs.
1. A brief
amicus curiae may be filed only after review and approval by the President of the State Bar who, in consultation with others as may be necessary and appropriate, shall insure that the brief is of high professional quality and an accurate representation of State Bar policy.
2. In addition to the person or persons actually preparing the brief, the President of the State Bar shall also appear as counsel on the brief.
3. The State Bar shall pay for the costs of printing and filing an
amicus curiae brief but will pay no legal fees for preparation or review of such brief.
(d) Role of Individual Members, Committees, Divisions and Sections.
1. Whenever practicable, appropriate State Bar committees, divisions and sections shall be consulted prior to authorization of an amicus curiae brief.
2. Individual members, committees, divisions and sections may recommend that a brief amicus curiae be filed in the name of the State Bar of Wisconsin, which recommendation shall include:
a. A full statement of the facts of the controversy and the status of the litigation;
b. A statement of the principles of law to be supported with a full explanation of the applicant's reasons for believing that the case is an appropriate one for State Bar involvement;
c. A statement advising when the recommendation was authorized and a description of any dissenting views when presented by a committee, division or section;
d. A full disclosure of any personal or professional interest in the matter of any proponent of the recommendation, or of any individual member of the section or division directors or officers or committee members which authorized the submission of the recommendation;
e. The name of the person or persons who are proposed to prepare the brief
amicus curiae;
f. The names of all interested parties to whom a copy of the recommendation has been furnished prior to submission to the Board of Governors or Executive Committee.
(e) Involvement by State Bar Membership.
1. Whenever practicable, before the Board of Governors or Executive Committee votes on whether to authorize the filing of an
amicus curiae brief, notice of the proposed action, inviting comment and recommendations from State Bar members, shall be published pursuant to SCR 10.12 or distributed by a method designed to reach State Bar members as quickly as possible.
2. All comments and recommendations from the membership timely received under (e)(1) shall be considered by the Board of Governors or Executive Committee prior to taking the proposed action.
Section 2. Section and Division Briefs.
(a) Authorization. No
amicus curiae brief shall be filed by any committee, section or division of the State Bar of Wisconsin without the authorization provided herein.
1. Upon receipt of any request to file an amicus curiae brief from any person, lawyer, committee, section or division of the State Bar, the President or designee shall, as soon as practical, telephonically or electronically communicate such request to counsel for the opposing party in the court below and to any other committee, section or division of the State Bar that reasonably would be expected to have an interest in the issues of the case and invite any timely comment to such request.
2. If a request originates from a court, whether it goes first to a committee, section or division or directly to the Board of Governors, the foregoing paragraph shall not apply.
3. Authorization for the preparation and filing of a brief amicus curiae by a committee, section or division shall be by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the Board of Governors present and voting at an official meeting of the Board of Governors.
4. In the event the President of the State Bar of Wisconsin determines it is not feasible or practical for the Board of Governors to meet and act upon a requested authorization to file a brief
amicus curiae, then Paragraph 3 shall not apply. In such case the President shall electronically communicate the request for such brief and any comments to all members of the Board of Governors, which communication shall be for informational and comment purposes only. The President shall then contact and convene, either in person or through telephonic or electronic communication, a meeting of the Executive Committee of the State Bar of Wisconsin. The committee shall then, where deemed appropriate by the President, assume the responsibilities of the Board of Governors as to the authorization of the preparation and filing of an
amicus curiae brief by affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the Executive Committee then participating and voting, provided that those Executive Committee members participating and voting constitute at least a majority of the Executive Committee.
5. If for any reason the President of the State Bar of Wisconsin is unable to assume the duties provided for above, the President-elect shall be authorized to act in the capacity of the President of the State Bar of Wisconsin for the limited purpose of determining whether or not it is feasible and practical to require an authorization of the total Board of Governors, or whether the situation demands immediate action and therefore the convening of the Executive Committee for the purpose of considering the
amicus curiae brief request.
6. The President has the discretion to refuse to consider a request to file an
amicus curiae brief in the event it is not submitted in a timely manner.z
(b) Appropriate Cases. Briefs amicus curiae may be authorized only when consistent with the purposes of the State Bar, as expressed in SCR 10.02(2) and the purposes of the section or division as expressed in the section bylaws.
(c) Preparation and Filing of Briefs.
1. A brief amicus curiae may be filed only after review and approval by the chairperson of the section or president of the division who, in consultation with others as may be necessary and appropriate, shall insure that the brief is of high professional quality and an accurate representation of section or division policy and in accordance with the authorization of the Board of Governors.
2. In addition to the person or persons actually preparing the brief, the chairperson of the section or president of the division shall also appear as counsel on the brief.
3. The section or division may pay for the costs of printing and filing an
amicus curiae brief but may not pay legal fees for preparation or review of such brief.
4. The brief must include a statement that it is filed only by the section or division, not the Board of Governors or any other State Bar entity.
(d) Role of Individual Members, Committees, Divisions and Sections.
1. Whenever practicable, appropriate State Bar committees, and other divisions and sections shall be consulted prior to requesting authorization of an
amicus curiae brief by the Board of Governors.
2. A section or division request for authorization to file an amicus curiae brief shall include:
a. A full statement of the facts of the controversy and the status of the litigation;
b. A statement of the principles of law to be supported with a full explanation of the reasons for believing that the case is an appropriate one for section or division involvement;
c. A statement advising when and by what vote it was decided to request authorization to file an
amicus brief and a description of any dissenting views;
d. A full disclosure of any personal or professional interest in the matter of any individual member or officer or director of the section or division;
e. The name of the person or persons who are proposed to prepare the brief
amicus curiae;
f. The names of all interested parties to whom a copy of the request for authorization has been furnished prior to submission to the Board of Governors or Executive Committee.
(e) Involvement by State Bar Membership.
1.Whenever practicable, before the Board of Governors or Executive Committee votes on whether to authorize the filing of an
amicus curiae brief, notice of the proposed action, inviting comment and recommendations from State Bar members, shall be published pursuant to SCR 10.12 or distributed by a method designed to reach State Bar members as quickly as possible.
2. All comments and recommendations from the membership timely received under (e)(1)1 shall be considered by the Board of Governors or Executive Committee prior to taking the proposed action.
Article VIII Indemnification of Officers, Employees, and Agents
Section 1. Power. The State Bar of Wisconsin (herein State Bar) shall indemnify any person who was or is a party or threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative and whether with or without merit (other than an action, suit or proceeding by or in the right of the State Bar) by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a member of the Board of Governors of the State Bar or its Executive Committee, an officer or employee of the State Bar, or an agent of the State Bar acting on its behalf as a committee, division, or section member or as an appointee of an officer or the Executive Director of the State Bar (all of the above herein designated as "State Bar Persons"), against expenses, including attorney's fees, judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement, actually and reasonably incurred by the person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if he or she breached or failed to perform any duty resulting solely from his or her status as a State Bar Person unless the breach or failure to perform constitutes any of the following:
(a) A willful failure to deal fairly with the State Bar or its members in connection with a matter in which the State Bar Person has a material conflict of interest.
