(2017 Wisconsin Act 235)
One of the most pressing civil litigation challenges for Wisconsin employers is the escalating transactional costs relating to discovery. Discovery is a fact-finding process that takes place after a lawsuit has been filed. Discovery methods include written questions (interrogatories), oral questions (depositions) and requests for documents. Failure to answer or fulfill a discovery request may lead to fines and other sanctions.
2017 Wisconsin Act 235 aligns Wisconsin’s civil justice procedures for discovery to the corresponding federal rules. Better uniformity between federal and state civil procedures for discovery should reduce litigation costs for businesses involved in civil justice lawsuits.