First-ever statewide pro se conference set
Madison, Wisconsin - June 14, 2007
Court officials from across Wisconsin will gather in Wausau on June 19 to discuss the best methods for the state court system to provide services for people who represent themselves in court.
The first-ever statewide conference on self-representation will examine the most successful programs offered regionally, and focus on developing a sustainable program that can be implemented statewide. The conference is an outgrowth of last June’s first-ever joint meeting of the Ninth and Tenth Judicial Districts, which was held in Chippewa Falls.
Judge Kevin S. Burke, who serves on the district court in Hennepin County, Minn., will deliver the keynote address on the connection between public trust and confidence in the justice system and assistance to self-represented litigants. He’s an internationally recognized expert, who has received national awards for judicial leadership and excellence.
The conference will be hosted by Deputy Chief Judge Gary L. Carlson, Taylor County Circuit Court, and Clerk of Court Karen Hepfler, Chippewa County Circuit Court, respective chairs of the Ninth and Tenth judicial districts’ committees on self-represented litigants, and Atty. Ann Zimmerman, who coordinates statewide pro se projects as executive assistant to Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson. Director of State Courts A. John Voelker also will participate.
More than 50 committee members and others, including judges, attorneys, court commissioners, clerks of court, registers in probate, staff from the State Bar and Wisconsin Judicare, academics, and community members are expected to attend.
The conference will run from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. on June 19 at 212 River Drive in Wausau. For more information, contact Ann Zimmerman at (608) 261-8297.