Wisconsin Supreme Court 2020-21 Term Begins August 1 with Karofsky in, Kelly out.

Wisconsin’s Supreme Court 2020-21 term begins August 1, 2020, with initial oral argument set for September 8. Go here for a list of cases to be heard in September and here for the 2020-21 court calendar.

With the new term brings in a significantly different court. Conservative Justice Daniel Kelly, author of Tetra Tech and other cases curbing agency authorities, is replaced by liberal Justice Jill Karofsky. Karofsky, a former Dane County Circuit Judge, was not shy when campaigning on her progressive credentials. Answering an ACLU questionnaire prior to the election, she tagged Koschkee v. Taylor as the worst Wisconsin Supreme Court case in the past 30 years. Her reason: The court “reduced the power of agencies to promulgate administrative rules.”

Patience Drake Roggensack will sit as Chief Justice during the 2020-21 term, filling out her third consecutive two-year term as chief justice. Roggensack was the first justice chosen to serve as chief justice since a 2015 constitutional amendment that required the chief justice be elected for a term of 2 years by a majority of the justices rather than by seniority.