Wisconsin State Law Library

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May 30, 2011

WSLL Recommends: Defense of Drunk Driving Cases

Many practitioners may already be familiar with Wisconsin treatises covering driving under the influence. For more detail and sample forms researchers can turn to the general treatise, Defense of Drunk Driving Cases: Criminal & Civil.

The first three volumes of this four-volume set focus on background, up-to-date caselaw and statutes, and scientific and technical information concerning DUI and DWI. Several chapters are devoted to examing chemical and other testing methods in depth, with device-specific information. This treatise is also useful for learning more about medical conditions and driving impairment, liquor liability, physician-patient privilege, and non-chemical evidence.

The final volume in the set is practice-oriented featuring a 50 state survey of DUI laws, sample forms and motions, and guides and sample scripts to adapt for use during trials.

A looseleaf treatise, this title is updated three times per year. A complete table of contents for each volume is available online.

May 24, 2011

Libraries Closed: Monday, May 30

The Wisconsin State Law Library, Milwaukee Legal Resource Center, and Dane County Legal Resource Center will be closed on Monday, May 30th for the Memorial Day holiday.

To submit a question to the Wisconsin State Law Library while we are closed, you may call us at 608-267-9696 or Ask a Librarian online. We will respond to questions and requests the following day.

May 22, 2011

Top Ten Consumer Complaints

This year the Federal Trade Commission released a report of the top ten consumer complaints the agency received in 2010. Identity theft continued to top the list, at 19% of the over one million complaints. 

The top ten complaints were:
  1. Identity theft
  2. Debt collection
  3. Internet services
  4. Prizes, sweepstakes, and lotteries
  5. Shop-at-home and catalog sales
  6. Imposter scams
  7. Internet auctions
  8. Foreign money/counterfeit check scams
  9. Telephone and mobile services
  10. Credit cards
After seeing this report, we took a fresh look at the resources linked our related legal topic pages. Take a look!
For general consumer information including important contacts, see our Consumer complaints and Consumer protection pages. Have a question? Ask a librarian!

May 20, 2011

WI Briefs Database Turns a Page

Access to the appellate briefs and appendices in the Wisconsin Briefs database has been brought to you by the successful and collaborative effort of the staff at the State Law Library, who generates the scanned images, and the staff at the UW Law Library, who host this database on their website.

Due to the adoption of appellate electronic filing by the Wisconsin Court System, on July 1, 2009, we will stop expanding the Wisconsin Briefs database. You will continue to have access to the database on the UW Law Library's website for briefs and appendices from published and unpublished cases found in 173 Wis.2d through 317 Wis.2d but we will not be adding new documents to this webpage in the future.

You will now be able to retrieve briefs from 318 Wis.2d forward by way of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and Court of Appeals Access database (WSCCA). You can access electronically filed and scanned briefs by using the "Document Search" tab or by accessing the "Case History" page from an individual case's summary. Be aware that the "Full Text Search" from the "Document Search" tab will only retrieve the text of e-filed briefs. Please feel free to contact the State Law Library's reference staff with access questions as we continue to fill in the gaps between what is available on the WI Briefs webpage and what is currently available through WSCCA.

The largest difference in access between the WI Briefs webpage and WSCCA is the absence of appendices. The court system has adopted a more restrictive access policy for the appendices of appellate cases on WSCCA to protect sensitive personal information. However, appendices are public record and will be made available through the fee-based document delivery service of the State Law Library.

May 15, 2011

Dane County Everyday Law Collection

We are proud to introduce the "Everyday Law" Collection, featuring over 50 items from legal self-help publishers such as Nolo, Sphinx, and the Dane County Bar Association. These materials are mostly geared towards the self-represented litigant who needs a basic explanation of their complex legal issues.

Topics include but are not limited to small claims, divorce, parenting plans, self-representation, legal research, neighbor law, and bankruptcy.

The collection is prominently displayed in the main public area of the Legal Resource Center, easily accessible for attorneys who would like to help their clients discover simple yet useful legal resources while in the Dane County Courthouse.

Browse the collection online: Dane County Everyday Law Collection.

The Legal Resource Center is open for visitors Monday-Friday, 8:30 am-4:30 pm in Rm L1007 of the Courthouse.  

May 8, 2011

Happy 15th Birthday, MLRC!

The Wisconsin State Law Library isn't the only one celebrating a milestone anniversary this year. May 1, 2011 marks the 15th anniversary of the Milwaukee Legal Resource Center.

To celebrate, during the week of May 9 library staff is hosting some fun activities and prizes around the theme of "paper." There will be a hidden word puzzle and a trivia contest based on the movie "Paper Chase" and the week will culminate with the judging of origami entries. The many children who visit the MLRC can also participate in the fun by guessing the number of marshmallows in a jar. At least three prizes will be awarded each day.

Learn more about the MLRC's history in our most recent newsletter: Happy 15th Birthday, MLRC!

May 6, 2011

WSLL at Your Service: May 2011

The May issue of the newsletter, WSLL @ Your Service, has been published. 

Highlights include: 

May 2, 2011

Spring and Summer CLE Classes

Sign up now for our May 24th CLE class, Finding Wisconsin Public Records. This class will cover how to find public records on individuals and businesses. Discover criminal records, state and local court records, business entity records, liens, foreclosures, real estate records, and more. For more information and to register for this class, see our classes page.

We have two upcoming summer classes open now for registration. In June, sign up for the popular Researching Wisconsin Legislative History class. In July, learn about free on-site access to the State Bar of Wisconsin's Books Unbound database during our new Books Unbound @ WSLL class.

Register for these classes today. Register online or print the registration form.

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