Wisconsin Court of Appeals

Court of Appeals of Wisconsin
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin
Established	August 1978
Jurisdiction	Wisconsin
Location	Milwaukee (District I); Waukesha (District II) ; Wausau (District III); Madison (District IV)
Composition method	Non-partisan election from within judicial district
Authorized by	Wis. Const. Art VII § 5; Wis. Stats. Chapter 752
Appeals to	Supreme Court of Wisconsin
Appeals from	Wisconsin circuit courts
Judge term length	Six years
Number of positions	16
Website	www.wicourts.gov/courts/appeals/
Chief Judge
Currently	Maxine Aldridge White
Since	August 1, 2023
Deputy Chief Judge
Currently	Lisa K. Stark
Since	August 2, 2015
Division map

The Wisconsin Court of Appeals is an intermediate appellate court that reviews contested decisions of the Wisconsin circuit courts. The Court of Appeals was created in August 1978^[1] to alleviate the Wisconsin Supreme Court's rising number of appellate cases. Published Court of Appeals opinions are considered binding precedent until overruled by the Supreme Court; unpublished opinions are not. The Court hears most appeals in three-judge panels, but appeals of circuit court decisions in misdemeanor, small claims, and municipal ordinance cases are decided by a single judge.

Composition

The Court of Appeals comprises 16 judges elected to six-year terms in four geographic districts. Districts I and II have four judges each, three judges are chambered in District III, and five in District IV. The court is administered by a chief judge, appointed by the Wisconsin Supreme Court, who is assisted by a deputy chief judge and a presiding judge in each district. Vacancies on the court are filled by gubernatorial appointment; following the appointment of a judge, a new election for that seat is scheduled in the next Spring election in which no other Appeals Court seat in that Appeals Court District is up for election, unless that election occurs less than five months from the date of the appointment.^[2]

Districts

District I is chambered in Milwaukee and contains only Milwaukee County.
District II is chambered in Waukesha and contains Calumet, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Kenosha, Manitowoc, Ozaukee, Racine, Sheboygan, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha, and Winnebago counties.
District III is chambered in Wausau and contains Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Brown, Buffalo, Burnett, Chippewa, Door, Douglas, Dunn, Eau Claire, Florence, Forest, Iron, Kewaunee, Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Oneida, Outagamie, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Price, Rusk, Sawyer, Shawano, St. Croix, Taylor, Trempealeau, Vilas, and Washburn counties.
District IV is chambered in Madison and contains Adams, Clark, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dodge, Grant, Green, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, La Crosse, Lafayette, Marquette, Monroe, Portage, Richland, Rock, Sauk, Vernon, Waupaca, Waushara, and Wood counties.

Current judges


	Name	Years on court	Assumed office	Term ends^[a]	Law school
District I
Presiding Judge	M. Joseph Donald	4	September 4, 2019	2026	Marquette University
Chief Judge	Maxine Aldridge White	4	January 16, 2020	2027	Marquette University
Judge 3	Sara J. Geenen	0	August 1, 2023	2029	University of Wisconsin
Judge 4	Pedro Colón	0	November 20, 2023	2024	University of Wisconsin
District II
Judge 1	Lisa S. Neubauer	16	December 2007	2026	University of Chicago
Presiding Judge	Mark D. Gundrum	12	November 4, 2011	2025	University of Wisconsin
Judge 3	Shelley Grogan	2	August 1, 2021	2027	Marquette University
Judge 4	Maria S. Lazar	1	August 1, 2022	2028	Georgetown University
District III
Deputy Chief Judge (PJ)	Lisa K. Stark	11	April 23, 2013	2025	University of Wisconsin
Judge 2	Thomas F. Hruz	9	July 21, 2014	2028	Marquette University
Judge 3	Greg Gill	2	August 1, 2021	2027	Marquette University
District IV
Presiding Judge	Brian W. Blanchard	13	August 1, 2010	2028	Northwestern University
Judge 2	JoAnne F. Kloppenburg	11	August 1, 2012	2024	University of Wisconsin
Judge 3	Rachel A. Graham	4	July 4, 2019	2026	University of Wisconsin
Judge 4	Jennifer E. Nashold	4	August 1, 2019	2025	University of Wisconsin
Judge 5	Chris Taylor	0	August 1, 2023	2029	University of Wisconsin

^ Terms end on July 31.

Judges

District I

Judge	District	Start year	End year	Notes
Robert C. Cannon	I	1978	1981	Presiding Judge (1978–1979)
John A. Decker	I	1978	1984	Chief Judge (1978–1983)
William R. Moser	I	1978	1992	Presiding Judge (1985–1992) Presiding Judge (1979–1983)
Rudolph T. Randa	I	1981	1982	Appointed by Lee S. Dreyfus Elevated to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
Michael T. Sullivan	I	1984	1996
Charles B. Schudson	I	1992	2004
Ted E. Wedemeyer Jr.	I	1982	1988	Presiding Judge (1983–1985)
Ted E. Wedemeyer Jr.	I	1992	2008	Presiding Judge (1993–2007)
Ralph Adam Fine	I	1988	2014
Patricia Curley	I	1996	2016	Presiding Judge (2007–2016)
Joan Kessler	I	2004	2020
Kitty Brennan	I	2008	2019	Appointed by Jim Doyle
Rebecca Bradley	I	2015	2015	Appointed by Scott Walker
William Brash	I	2015	2023	Appointed by Scott Walker Chief Judge (2021–2023) Presiding Judge (2019–2021) Lost re-election
Timothy Dugan	I	2016	2023	Appointed by Scott Walker
Joe Donald	I	2019		Appointed by Tony Evers Presiding Judge (2021-Present)
Maxine Aldridge White	I	2020		Appointed by Tony Evers Chief Judge (2023–present)
Sara J. Geenen	I	2023
Pedro Colón	I	2023		Appointed by Tony Evers

District II

Judge	District	Start year	End year	Notes
Harold M. Bode	II	1978	1981
Clair H. Voss	II	1978	1983	Presiding Judge (1978–1983)
Richard S. Brown	II	1978	2015	Chief Judge (2007–2015) Presiding Judge (1996–2001) Presiding Judge (1983–1990)
Burton A. Scott	II	1980	1991	Chief Judge (1983–1989)
Neal Nettesheim	II	1983	2007	Appointed by Tony Earl Deputy Chief Judge (1998–2007) Presiding Judge (2001–2003) Presiding Judge (1990–1993)
Daniel P. Anderson	II	1990	2011	Presiding Judge (2007–2009) Presiding Judge (2003–2005) Presiding Judge (1993–1996)
Harry G. Snyder	II	1991	2010	Appointed by Tommy Thompson Presiding Judge
Lisa S. Neubauer	II	2007		Appointed by Jim Doyle Chief Judge (2015–2021) Presiding Judge (2009–2015)
Paul F. Reilly	II	2010	2022	Presiding Judge (2015–2021)
Mark Gundrum	II	2011		Appointed by Scott Walker Presiding Judge (2021–present)
Brian Hagedorn	II	2015	2019	Appointed by Scott Walker Elevated to Wisconsin Supreme Court
Jeffrey O. Davis	II	2019	2021	Appointed by Tony Evers Lost re-election
Shelley Grogan	II	2021
Lori Kornblum	II	2022	2022	Appointed by Tony Evers Lost re-election
Maria S. Lazar	II	2022

District III

Judge	District	Start year	End year	Notes
W. Patrick Donlin	III	1978	1981
John P. Foley	III	1978	1984	Presiding Judge (1981–1984)
Robert W. Dean	III	1978	1986	Presiding Judge (1978–1981)
Thomas Cane	III	1981	2007	Appointed by Lee S. Dreyfus Chief Judge (1998–2007) Deputy Chief Judge (1989–1998) Presiding Judge (1984–1998)
Daniel L. LaRocque	III	1985	1997	Appointed by Tony Earl
Gordon Myse	III	1986	1999	Appointed by Tony Earl Presiding Judge (1998–1999)
Michael W. Hoover	III	1997	2015	Deputy Chief Judge (2012–2015) Presiding Judge (1999–2015)
Gregory A. Peterson	III	1999	2007	Deputy Chief Judge (2007–2012)
Edward R. Brunner	III	2007	2011
Mark Mangerson	III	2011	2014	Appointed by Scott Walker
Lisa K. Stark	III	2013		Appointed by Scott Walker Deputy Chief Judge (2015–present) Presiding Judge (2015–present)
Thomas F. Hruz	III	2014		Appointed by Scott Walker
Mark Seidl	III	2015	2021
Greg Gill	III	2021

District IV

Judge	District	Start year	End year	Notes
Martha Bablitch	IV	1978	1985
Paul C. Gartzke	IV	1978	1996	Presiding Judge (1978–1996)
Charles P. Dykman	IV	1978	2010	Presiding Judge (2009–2010) Presiding Judge (1996–2001)
William Eich	IV	1985	2000	Appointed by Tony Earl Chief Judge (1989–1998)
Robert D. Sundby	IV	1986	1996
Margaret J. Vergeront	IV	1994	2012	Presiding Judge (2010–2011)
Patience D. Roggensack	IV	1996	2003	Elevated to Wisconsin Supreme Court
David G. Deininger	IV	1996	2007	Appointed by Tommy Thompson Presiding Judge (2003–2005)
Paul Lundsten	IV	2000	2019	Appointed by Tommy Thompson Presiding Judge (2017–2019) Presiding Judge (2011–2013) Presiding Judge (2005–2007)
Paul B. Higginbotham	IV	2003	2017	Appointed by Jim Doyle Presiding Judge (2007–2009)
Burnie Bridge	IV	2007	2010	Appointed by Jim Doyle
Gary Sherman	IV	2010	2019	Appointed by Jim Doyle
Brian Blanchard	IV	2010		Presiding Judge (2021-present) Presiding Judge (2013–2015)
JoAnne Kloppenburg	IV	2012		Presiding Judge (2015–2017)
Michael R. Fitzpatrick	IV	2017	2023	Presiding Judge (2019-2021)
Rachel A. Graham	IV	2019		Appointed by Tony Evers
Jennifer E. Nashold	IV	2019
Chris Taylor	IV	2023