Vol. 76, No. 3, March
2003
Office of Lawyer Regulation consolidates
operations
In January 2004, the Wisconsin Office of Lawyer Regulation (OLR) will
consolidate its Madison and Milwaukee offices, further increasing the
agency's efficiency. "While the Milwaukee office has performed an
important role, the future need for staff in Milwaukee is substantially
outweighed by the advantages of a consolidated office," says OLR
Director Keith Sellen.
"Central intake, established in January 2001, has made the lawyer
regulation system accessible to the public through a toll-free number,"
continues Sellen. "Our two-year experience validates our expectation
that a centralized approach to receiving and evaluating grievances is
superior to the geographic approach. This approach has substantially
increased the system's accessibility, its capacity to resolve
grievances, the timeliness with which matters are processed, and has
raised the level of satisfaction among members of the public and the
bar.
"The important goals of ensuring access to and confidence in the
system can be accomplished well by a consolidated office," concludes
Sellen. "Taking advantage of our new system's strengths will further
improve the system's ability to carry out the supreme court's
responsibility to supervise the profession and protect the public.
Phil Habermann, first State Bar executive
director, father of Judicare, dies
On Feb. 11, 2003, Philip S. Habermann, 89, passed away in Madison
following a lengthy illness. Habermann was hired as the State Bar of
Wisconsin's first executive secretary, serving in the position from
December 1948 until his retirement in November 1974. During the 26 years
of Habermann's leadership, the Bar achieved several milestones,
including leasing its first office in 1948 in Madison and then later
building - and enlarging - its own offices at 402 W. Wilson St. In
Habermann the Bar also had its first lobbyist.
As the legal profession saw rapid growth following World War II, the
Bar through Habermann's efforts adapted to a surge in membership in the
voluntary association. And, with Habermann's guidance, the Bar embarked
on publishing Wisconsin-specific law books and increasing the number and
quality of seminar offerings through a partnership with ATS-CLE (the
precursor to State Bar CLE Seminars and Books).
In March 1994 Habermann was awarded the U.W. Law School Distinguished
Service Award in recognition of his lifetime of service to the legal
profession as State Bar executive director. Habermann included the Bar's
transition from a voluntary to a mandatory organization in 1957 and the
establishment of mandatory CLE in 1977 as two of the most important
issues he and the Bar faced.
In a July 7, 1994, Lodi Enterprise article reporting his
achievements, Habermann said, "I get the most pride from having
conceived and developed the Judicare program, which is still active in
Wisconsin and has been adopted in some other states." The Judicare
program responded to a mandate to make civil legal services more
accessible to poor people during President Lyndon Johnson's War on
Poverty. Habermann also worked to create the Wisconsin Bar
Foundation.
Habermann influenced the Bar's efforts to provide ethics guidance to
lawyers and to apply sound business practices to law office management,
just as he applied those practices to managing the Bar's finances. Some
attorneys referred to Habermann fondly as "Frugal Phil" and respected
his abilities to do much with a slim budget.
In 1986 Habermann wrote "A History of the Organized Bar in
Wisconsin," which will be posted on WisBar as part of the Bar's legal
history project.
Born on Aug. 11, 1913, Haberman, a Lodi native and noted local
historian, served in the U.S. Navy during WWII and upon his discharge
earned a law degree in 1947 from the U.W. Law School under the G.I.
Bill.
Marquette University names Kearney law school
dean
Effective July 1, Joseph Kearney, a Marquette University Law School
professor, will become dean of Marquette University Law School. Kearney
succeeds Janine Geske, who has served as interim law school dean since
the death last June of Dean Howard Eisenberg.
"It is a privilege to be appointed dean of the law school," said
Kearney. "The faculty and alumni have long made substantial
contributions to the Wisconsin legal system and the larger Wisconsin
community, and we expect our students to continue and advance this
tradition. It also is humbling to succeed Dean Eisenberg and Justice
Geske, both of whom made extraordinary contributions to society even
before serving as dean. I am excited about the future of the law school
and the collaborative possibilities within both the university and the
larger community."
Kearney has been a member of the law school faculty since 1997. He is
a nationally recognized scholar in telecommunications law and previously
practiced for six years at Sidley & Austin, Chicago's largest law
firm. Kearney, 38, is an honors graduate of Yale College and Harvard Law
School.
Program addresses issues facing managing
partners
The State Bar and the Wisconsin Association of Legal Administrators
will host the Managing Partners' Dinner on May 1, from 4 to 6 p.m., at
the Milwaukee Athletic Club.
Keynote speaker Blane R. Prescott, a partner and consultant with
Hildebrandt International, San Francisco, will address "What's Keeping
Managing Partners Awake at Night, and What Can You Do About It?" Topics
covered include: sudden loss of key clients, flight risk of top
rainmakers, dealing with problem partners, and more.
The program, approved for 2.0 CLE credits, costs $60. To make a
reservation, contact Sharon Ewers at (608) 259-2623 or sewers@staffordlaw.com
by April 11.
Mandatory court forms updated; new victim
notification cards introduced
As of Jan. 31, the Wisconsin Records Management Committee, an
advisory committee to the Director of State Courts Office, which
develops and distributes mandated forms, released the following forms to
comply with the 2001 Wis. Act 109 truth-in-sentencing laws. New
(N)/Revised (R)
Victim notification
CR-240 (R) Victim Notification Card
CR-241 (R) Victim Notice of Rights
Modification of extended supervision conditions
CR-250 (N) Petition to Modify Court-Imposed Conditions of
Extended Supervision, § 302.113(7m)
CR-251 (N) Verification of Date of Release to Extended
Supervision, § 302.113(7m)
CR-252 (N) Order Modifying Conditions of Extended
Supervision, § 302.113(9g)
Release from initial confinement based upon age or terminal
illness
CR-254 (N) Petition to Modify Bifurcated Sentence, §
302.113(9g) (Geriatric/Terminal)
CR-255 (N) Referral by Department of Corrections to
Sentencing Court, § 302.113(9g) (Geriatric/Terminal)
CR-256 (N) Order Concerning Sentence Modification,
§ 302.113(9g) (Geriatric/Terminal)
Sentence adjustment
CR-258 (N) Petition for Sentence Adjustment, § 973.195
CR-259 (N) Notice to District Attorney/District
Attorney Response on Petition for Sentence Adjustment, §
973.195
CR-260 (N) Order Concerning Sentence Adjustment, §
973.195
CR-261 (N) Verification of Time Served, §
973.195
Forms and form summaries are available online in PDF or MS Word
format at www.courts.state.wi.us/circuit/search_forms.html.
For more information, contact Judy Mahlkuch at Judy.mahlkuch@courts.state.wi.us.
or call (608) 266-7143.
ABA president-elect Archer comes to Milwaukee
in May
Dennis W. Archer, the first African-American to become
president-elect of the American Bar Association, is the featured speaker
at two upcoming events in Milwaukee. On May 7, Archer will speak at the
Wisconsin Association of African-American Lawyers 14th Annual W. Dale
Phillips Scholarship Banquet at the Marcus Center for the performing
Arts Bradley Pavilion, and he will speak on May 8 at the State Bar
Annual Convention.
The WAAL event begins at 5:30 p.m. The cost is $60 per person or $700
per table. For more information, call (414) 277-8500 or email main@gshllp.com. For more
information about the State Bar's Annual Convention, call (800) 728-7788
or visit www.wisbar.org/convention/2003.
Wisconsin
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