Charlie Hoffmann

Wisconsin Court System / Wisconsin Supreme Court

Following is a brief overview of the Wisconsin Court System. Municipal courts -237 municipal courts -240 municipal judges -Milwaukee has the largest municipal court and three full-time municipal judges. Madison has the only other full-time municipal court. Circuit courts -Single level trial court since 1978. -249 circuit judges in 72 counties. Judges elected countywide to six-year terms in non-partisan elections. -Milwaukee County is the largest jurisdiction with 47 judges. -30 counties have one judge each; smaller counties share a judge. Court of Appeals -Created in 1978 and originally designed to handle 1,200 cases per year. -Mostly mandatory jurisdiction, meaning that litigants have the right to appeal their cases from the circuit court to the Court of Appeals. -16 judges in four districts. Judges elected district wide to six-year terms. Supreme Court -Seven justices elected statewide to 10-year terms. -Court of last resort. -Court reviews approximately 1,000 petitions per year and accepts between 100 and 120.