Archives: Civil Procedure

It seems that every few years, the Court of Appeals needs to remind trial courts that rules of evidence and procedure apply in family law cases.

Recent developments in case law along with the effect of the depressed economy on family law make this a good time to visit the current law of contempt remedies.

As almost any family law attorney can attest, manipulative payors exist. Unfortunately, due to a recent decision from the Wisconsin Supreme Court, their gamesmanship may continue.

May a circuit court use its remedial contempt powers to craft a remedy, where a party fails to provide tax returns and income information in a timely manner as required under statute, a divorce judgement, and a court order, but then the party produces the information just before the contempt hearing? The Wisconsin Supreme Court says “Yes.”

Imagine calling to the witness stand the paramour of your client’s estranged spouse, in an attempt to prove that the spouse entered into a marital property agreement with a divorce in mind.

Frivolous actions seem to occur more frequently in family court than in most other areas of law.

In personal injury cases, the use of formal discovery is routine. Failure to do so may, in fact, be negligence. But, family law is not personal injury law. In fact, in many – if not most, family law cases, doing formal discovery may be malpractice.