Recent Wisconsin News

April 2019 Newsletter

Risky business: Lawsuit venue shopping harms access to care An overview of Pennsylvania’s recent proposed changes to lawsuit venue filing rules highlights the risk it adds to accessible and affordable care. Following a surge of liability lawsuits in locations that...

Wisconsin is second best state for physicians, new national ranking finds

SOURCE: Wisconsin Watchdog Wisconsin ranks the second best state for doctors to practice in, according to a new national study, but a state physicians’ group said the analysis tends to run counter to its recent surveys. The website WalletHub.com, which published a...

July 2018 Newsletter

Wisconsin court preserves reforms – and access to care A decision this month by Wisconsin’s state Supreme Court kept intact liability reforms that have placed reasonable limits on noneconomic damages and resulted in lower health care costs for patients and physicians....

Current Medical Liability Laws

Damage Caps	$750,000 non-economic damages for medical negligence. (2006) A wrongful death action may be brought jointly with a negligence action. Wrongful death actions are capped at $500,000 per occurrence for minors and $350,000 per occurrence for adults.
Joint Liability Reform	Yes. Defendants are responsible only for their proportionate share of negligence if they are less than 51% at fault unless a defendant acted as part of a common scheme or plan.
Collateral Source Reform	Evidence of collateral source payments is admissible under sub. (7) only if the evidence is relevant. In a medical malpractice action, evidence of collateral source payments is relevant if it is probative of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of damages. Weborg v. Jenny, 341 Wis. 2d 668, 816 N.W.2d 191 (2021).
Attorney Fees Limited	Yes. As follows: 33 1/3% of the first $1 million, or 25% if certain procedural timeframes are met; 20% of amounts exceeding $1 million.
Periodic Payments Permitted	Yes. If future medical expenses are expected to exceed $100,000.