WISCONSIN REFORMS
Appeal Bond Reform:
A.B. 548 (2003). Limits the amount a
defendant can be required to pay to secure the right to appeal to $100 million.
Employer Reference
Liability Reform: AB 860 (1996). Limits employer liability for providing employee
references by establishing a presumption that the employer acted in good faith
unless rebutted by “clear and convincing” evidence that the employer knowingly
provided false information, acted maliciously, or violated the fair employment
law.
Joint and Several Liability Reform: SB 11 (1995): Wis. Stat.
Ann. § 895.045(1). Bars application of the rule of joint and several liability
in the recovery of all damages from defendants found to be less than 51% at
fault. Provides that a plaintiff’s
negligence will be measured separately against each
defendant. The statute retroactively abolishing joint
liability for any defendant found to be less than 51% at fault violated the Due
Process Clauses of the State and Federal Constitutions. Matthies v. Positive Manufacturing Co., 2001
WL 737384 (Wis. July 2, 2001).
Medical Liability Reform: Collateral Source Rule
Reform: Wisc. Stat. Ann. § 893.55 (7). Allows for the admissibility of “evidence of any
compensation for bodily injury received from sources other than the defendant
to compensate the claimant.”
Medical Liability Reform: Contingent Fee Reform:
Wisc. Stat. Ann. § 655.013. Limits
contingent fees to 1/3 of the first
$1 million recovered, 25% of the first $1 million recovered if liability is
stipulated within 180 days of filing of the original complaint and not within
60 days of first day of trial, and 20% for amounts exceeding $1 million
recovered. Allows a
judge to exceed these amounts in exceptional circumstances.
Medical Liability Reform: Medical Records: AB 727
(1996). Overturns the 1990 Court of Appeals decision in Ambrose v. General Cas. Co., which denied access to medical records
pre-existing the date of the occurrence at issue in a given lawsuit. Allows a
court order to provide requested information including directly relevant
medical records, pre-existing conditions, and treatments.
Medical Liability Reform: Noneconomic Damage Limits: A.B. 1073
(2006). Limits
noneconomic damages in medical liability cases to $750,000.
Medical Liability Reform: Noneconomic Damages Reform: AB 36
(1995): Wisc. Stat. Ann. §§ 893.55, 895.04. Limits the award of noneconomic damages in medical
liability cases to $350,000, indexed for inflation. The $350,000 cap on noneconomic damages in
medical malpractice actions violated the equal protection provision of the
State Constitution. Ferdon
v. Wisconsin Patients Comp. Fund, 701 N.W.2d 440 (Wis. 2005).
Medical
Liability Reform: Periodic Payment of Future Damages: Wisc.
Stat. Ann. § 655.015. Requires future damages in excess of $100,000 to be
paid into a fund and then distributed periodically to claimants.
Medical Liability Reform: Wrongful Death Damages Reform:
Wisc. Stat. Ann. §§ 893.55,
895.04. Limits damages in wrongful death cases to $500,000
for a minor and $350,000 for an adult.
Obesity Litigation Reform: S.B. 161 (2006). Exempts from civil liability manufacturers, producers,
packers, distributors, carriers, holders, sellers, marketers, and advertisers
of food (as defined in 21 U.S.C. 321 (f)) or an association of one or more such
entities for claims arising out of weight gain, obesity, a health condition associated
with weight gain or obesity, or other generally known conditions allegedly
caused or likely to result from the long-term consumption of food. The
liability exemption does not apply if the claim is based
on a material violation of a state or federal adulteration or misbranding
requirement. The liability exemption
also does not apply for any other material violation of federal or state law
applicable to the manufacturing, marketing, distribution, advertising, labeling or sale of food and the violation was committed
knowingly and willfully
Punitive Damages Reform: Clear and Convincing
Evidence” Wangen v. Ford Motor Co.,
294 N.W.2d 437 (Wis. 1980). Requires a plaintiff to prove
punitive damages by “clear and convincing evidence.”
Punitive
Damages Reform: Malicious Conduct: SB 11 (1995). Requires a plaintiff to show that a defendant acted “maliciously
or in intentional disregard of the rights of the plaintiff” for the recovery of
punitive damages.
Sports Liability
Reform: AB 628 (1996). Limits liability for individuals who participate in
contact recreational sports activities by changing the standard of care from
ordinary negligence to recklessness in cases involving injury.
Statutes of Limitation
and Repose Reform: Accountants: SB 358 (1994).
Establishes a 6-year
statute of repose for actions against accountants, with a one-year statute of
limitations for causes of action that arise the last year the statute of repose
runs.
Statutes of Limitation
and Repose Reform: Real Property: SB 314 (1994). Establishes a 10-year statute of repose for real
property design cases, with a three-year statute of limitations for causes of
action that arise between the eighth and tenth years that the statute of repose
runs.
