Wisconsin Court System / Wisconsin Supreme Court

Administration of JusticeUnited States501-1000 Employees

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.

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