A circuit court case can be a criminal, traffic, or civil matter brought in front of a judge and/or jury to decide on the at-fault party. Once a decision has been made on a circuit court case, either party involved has the right to appeal the decision per Wisconsin state law.
What cases are handled by the Wisconsin Circut Court?
Cases handled by a circuit court in Wisconsin are more severe than cases handled by a county or municipal court. However, these cases are not always criminal cases either. There could be a civil lawsuit filed in a circuit court. In Wisconsin, these courts are also known as trial courts for the state.
Cases originate in these courts and are not heard in another court until a ruling has been made in the circuit court.
How do I file a Wisconsin Circut Court case?
There are several ways individuals can file a case in Wisconsin to be heard by a circuit court judge and/or jury. The information that you need to file a case is available under the Circuit Court link on the Wisconsin Court System website. After clicking on this link you will see a tab for fees and filing and it will pull up different links including a pdf download for all circuit court fees and access to the e-filing system and procedures for Wisconsin.
E-Filing a Wisconsin court case is available as a self-service option through the Wisconsin Court System. You would need to register for this service prior to using it and when submitting a case to be filed you would need to pay the filing fee before a case is filed in circuit court.
Who can access my Wisconsin Circut Court case?
As long as your case has not been expunged or sealed, or it does not contain information involving minors, custody or adoption hearings, or terminating parental rights it is considered to be public records. This means not only can your case be accessed by court officials or government agencies, but it can also be viewed by the general public.
Any documents that you file regarding your court case are uploaded to the Wisconsin judicial system case record portal. If a document is not uploaded to the system, then only individuals with access to the case in the e-filing system can access the documents.
If you need help with e-filing a court case or you are unsure what documents can be uploaded to the system, you would need to resort to the faqs and instructions that are provided on the website.
Contacting the Circuit Court
If you need to contact the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office or the County Clerk’s office, there is a directory available on the Wisconsin court system home page. The directory will list all the Circuit Courts in each county and will provide the main contact number for each department. If you have questions about a specific case, you will refer to the originating court for the case in question.