Wisconsin Supreme Court Creates Committee to Find Solutions for State's Attorney Shortage

Friday, June 14th, 2024 -- 10:00 AM

(Joe Schulz, Wisconsin Public Radio) The Wisconsin Supreme Court has created a committee to propose solutions for the state’s attorney shortage, which has been especially challenging for rural areas.

According to Joe Schulz with WIsconsin Public Radio, the committee is composed of representatives from the State Bar of Wisconsin, attorneys and judges from around the state, as well as deans at the state’s two law schools.

Officials say chief judges from Wisconsin’s nine judicial administrative districts will help spearhead the effort. Chief state Supreme Court Justice Annette Ziegler last week announced the committee was created to study the issue and make recommendations on how the state can address it.

The news comes after the state’s most recent biennial budget included pay bumps for public defenders and prosecutors. Those wage increases followed repeated warnings by the State Bar of Wisconsin that the shortage was so bad it was approaching a constitutional crisis.

The number of active attorneys in the state has decreased by more than 4 percent over the last four years, while the enrollment at both law schools in Wisconsin has decreased over the last five years, according to state court officials.

That trend has been more pronounced in rural Wisconsin. A 2021 report by the State Bar of Wisconsin found nearly half of the state’s lawyers live in the state’s seven most populous counties: Milwaukee, Dane, Waukesha, Brown, Racine, Outagamie and Ozaukee.

In fact, seven northern Wisconsin counties have no certified attorneys to take cases that State Public Defenders cannot, according to state court officials.

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