On April 3, 2018, the Wisconsin Legislature enacted 2017 Wis. Act 235 which substantially changes certain rules governing civil litigation in Wisconsin. Included in this Act are new rules regarding discovery practice and the Rules of Civil Procedure. It is…
Recently, Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer, S.C. (MWL) successfully argued an appeal regarding a firefighter’s claims of defamation. The dispute stemmed from a local television broadcast in which a reporter discussed the disabled status of local firefighter. The firefighter had injured…
On May 2, 2017, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals outlined why an insurance carrier that fails to defend an insured without first seeking a judicial determination of no coverage does so at its own peril. See Country World Media Group,…
The hearing is underway and the injured worker claims a significant injury after a slip and fall. She complains about her inability to work due to the immense pain in her lower back and left ankle. This is her third…
Back in September 2013, we posted an article entitled “Do Liability Waivers Really Work?” The article served as a primer and cautionary tale regarding the enforceability of common liability waivers. These are the agreements required by gyms, martial arts facilities,…
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has recently had occasion to clarify the issue of whether extrinsic evidence can be considered in determining an insurer’s duty to defend in the case of Water Well Solutions Serv., Inc. v. Consolidated Ins. Co., 2016…
The recent consolidated bellwether trial of the DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant multi-district litigation concluded on Thursday, March 17, 2016, with a whopping $502 million verdict against defendants DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson. Following months of trial in the…
In Moya v. Aurora Healthcare, Inc. and HealthPort Technologies, LLC, Appeal No. 2014AP2236, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals decided a case involving the construction and interpretation of Wis. Stats. §§ 146.81-146.83 to determine whether personal injury attorneys are exempt from the…
Allstate’s insured was involved in an automobile accident with a plaintiff in which it was alleged that Allstate’s insured was negligent causing injury to the plaintiff. Allstate had issued a policy of liability insurance to the driver and her husband,…
Dealing with a situation that is annoying, if nothing else, to quite a few businesses, a Wisconsin Court of Appeals decision recently upheld an exclusion within an insurance policy that precluded coverage for allegations that it’s insured violated the Telephone…