How the Center analyzed the relationship between campaign finance data and Wisconsin Supreme Court case outcomes, and a summary of the main findings showing that justices tended to favor their attorney donors.
Tag: Wisconsin Supreme Court
Posted inMoney & Politics Column
Spending subdued in high court race
This column’s prediction a few weeks back that “all signs point to another jaw-dropping spend-fest” seems not to be coming true. The spending is merely substantial, not overwhelming.
Posted inMoney & Politics Column
High court race will likely get costly
Roggensack’s foes, as well as her supporters, will likely respond to her perceived vulnerability by digging deep into their coffers. All signs point to another jaw-dropping spend-fest.
Posted inMoney & Politics Column
Lemon law lawyer lays an egg
Asked what he thought of Justice Roggensack, considered the leader of the court’s conservative majority, Megna replied, “I don’t really view her as my opponent. I view David Koch as my opponent.”
Posted inOpinion
Your Right to Know: Public’s business shouldn’t be ‘private’
Wisconsin’s Open Records Law asserts the public’s right to the “greatest possible information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts of those officers and employees who represent them.” But the law’s reach has been tested in recent years by electronic communications that are easily sent — and just as easily deleted — from officials’ email and cellphone accounts.
Posted inGovernment
Wisconsin receives C- for government accountability
Wisconsin receives a C- in a nationwide ranking of states’ accountability and risk of corruption. The State Integrity Investigation, released today, ranks Wisconsin 22nd, with a score of 70 percent — a score boosted by the creation in 2008 of the state Government Accountability Board to help clean up government.
Posted inGovernment, Money & Politics
Capitol chaos shines spotlight on secretive state institutions
The backdrop for many of Wisconsin’s current ethical controversies is an unprecedented flow of money into the state’s political machinery. With last year’s Supreme Court decision in the Citizens United case, some loopholes in the state’s campaign finance laws have grown even wider.
Posted inGovernment, Justice & Safety
Ain’t nobody’s business but their own?
Wisconsin’s Supreme Court justices are sharply split — not just on when they should not take part in a given case, but even over whether the court has the authority to make such calls.
Posted inGovernment
Roggensack decided case involving her own lawyer
In late 2006, a Grant County jury ordered Daniel Virnich and Jack Moores to pay a $6.5 million judgment, the largest in Wisconsin that year. The lawsuit brought by receiver Michael Polsky had accused the two men of plundering a stereo components company, through excessive payments to themselves. The company had gone belly up, leaving its creditors — including numerous small businesses — with major losses.
Posted inGovernment, Justice & Safety
How the justices see it
Wisconsin’s Supreme Court justices divide sharply on the recusal issue. Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson and Justices Ann Walsh Bradley and Patrick Crooks have sought stricter standards, while Justices David Prosser, Patience Roggensack, Annette Ziegler and Michael Gableman have voted to let judges take part in cases involving campaign supporters and against allowing a court majority to force a justice’s removal.
Posted inGovernment, Justice & Safety
Recusal disputes drive tension among Supreme Court justices
Wisconsin has a loose and secretive system for determining when judges and justices should recuse themselves though most other states have clearer, more objective recusal standards. The issue of judicial recusal has sparked sharp disagreements among a court known for its internal discord.
Posted inWisWatch Blog
Let the sunshine in … please
It’s time once again for proponents of open government and the free flow of information to celebrate Sunshine Week. But this year, we’ll be doing it under a cloud.