News

Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Patience Drake Roggensack on Thursday presented certificates of completion to 26 newly elected and appointed judges who were graduated from the 48th annual Wisconsin Judicial College, held Aug. 31 to Sept. 4 at the Osthoff Resort in Elkhart Lake.

The Judicial College, presented by the Supreme Court's Office of Judicial Education, is one of many rigorous judicial education programs designed to ensure Wisconsin's judges are well prepared for the bench. The Judicial College provides a highly interactive learning environment to assist new judges with the transition from being a lawyer advocate to a neutral arbiter of the law. Twenty veteran judges also attended the college as part of their continuing judicial education and to help new judges acquire the skills and knowledge needed to serve as a judge.

"The Judicial College has brought us together as judges—both experienced and new—to teach one another and to learn from one another," Roggensack said during a graduation ceremony. "We share our stories, our insights and our worries about how to effectively run a courtroom or address an appeal. Each of us wants to be a good judge. We seek that result, individually, and we seek it for our judicial colleagues because we are all part of the same team," Roggensack said.

Topics covered at this year’s Judicial College include:

• Court Administration: Setting and Maintaining Effective Case Management Expectations in Your Court
• CCIP (Children’s Court Improvement Project) E-Learning Project
• Criminal Law: Pretrial Problems and Procedure
• Code of Judicial Ethics and Disciplinary Process
• Vicarious Trauma for Judges
• An Experience in Evidence
• Judicial Wellness Round Tables
• Family Law Workshop for New Judges: Setting Maintenance & Child Support Orders
• Making A Record
• “It Takes A Strong Man to Make A Tender Chicken” – Problems and Solutions with Interpreting
• Jury Trial: Problems and Procedure
• Judicial Sentencing Skills

Attendance at the Judicial College and other judicial education programs is required of new and experienced judges. A Supreme Court Rule (SCR 32) requires that a judge earn 60 approved credits each six years in office. One credit is roughly equal to a half-day session for most educational programming. Also during each six-year period, judges must attend the Criminal Law and Sentencing Institute and tour a state prison as part of an Office of Judicial Education program.

Contact:
Tom Sheehan
Court Information Officer
(608) 261-6640