Voters will make two important decisions this spring affecting the Wisconsin Supreme Court. First, they will elect a supreme court justice to serve for the next ten years; Justice Ann Walsh Bradley is being challenged by Judge James P. Daley. Second, they will vote on a constitutional amendment that would change how the court’s chief justice is chosen. This report provides backgrounds on the candidates, in their own words, as well as arguments for and against the constitutional amendment.
This April, voters will make two decisions affecting the Wisconsin Supreme Court. They will elect a supreme court justice to serve for the next ten years; either Justice Ann W. Bradley or Judge James P. Daley (see page 5). They will also vote on a state constitutional amendment that would change the way the court’s chief justice is chosen (see page 7).
Surprisingly, Wisconsin has not always had a supreme court. When Wisconsin became the nation’s 30th state in 1848, the constitutional convention simply preserved the existing territorial court system. The state’s circuit court judges met in Madison each year to hear appeals of their own decisions.
It wasn’t until 1852 that the state legislature voted to create a separate supreme court, and in 1853, Wisconsin elected its first justices.
SUPREME COURT
The supreme court is the state’s highest court; that means for state issues, its rulings are final. Almost all of the court’s cases are appeals from lower courts (typically, courts of appeals), but it can hear original actions as well.
In addition to ruling on cases, the Wisconsin Supreme Court administers the state judicial system. The court appoints the director of state courts and directs the Board of Bar Examiners, which regulates lawyers in the state.