Stroud, Willink & Howard is pleased to announce that John J. Laubmeier has been elected as President-Elect of the Dane County Bar Association. The Dane County Bar Association was founded in 1858. It provides educational, mentoring, social, and pro bono...
News & Publications
Here It Is! “Show Me the Note” Defense Unsuccessful After Original Note Presented
As we have previously written, a foreclosing bank must prove that it holds the original note in order to obtain a foreclosure judgment in Wisconsin. Consequently, banks, borrowers, attorneys, and judges often question how a bank may go about proving it is the holder...
Wisconsin Amends Foreclosure Statute
Wisconsin's foreclosure statute (Chapter 846) recently has been amended by three separate legislative acts. First, the process for recording sheriff's deeds after sale has been changed. Second, the foreclosure statute has been amended to permit counties to conduct...
Supreme Court Rules That Confirmation of Winning Bid at Sheriff’s Sale Does Not Establish Guarantor’s Debt
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled that a circuit court may "decouple" the confirmation of a winning bid at sheriff's sale in a foreclosure action from the determination of the debt owed by a guarantor. Horizon Bank v. Marshall Point Realty, LLC, et al., 2018 WI...
Lender Must Pay Borrower’s Attorney Fees as Equitable Remedy for its Bad Faith
In a 6-0 decision, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has decided that circuit courts have the power to award attorney fees as part of an equitable remedy "in exceptional cases and for dominating reasons of justice." Nationstar Mortgage LLC v. Stafsholt, 2018 WI 21. The...
Wisconsin’s Circuit Court Access Website Will No Longer Display Certain Cases After Two Years
The State of Wisconsin maintains a website (wccabeta.wicourts.gov) that provides public access to certain records of the Wisconsin circuit courts. The website is very user-friendly and can be searched in a variety of different ways, including by the name of a party...
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act “Safe Harbor” Turns Rocky for Debt Collectors
As most businesses know, getting paid can sometimes be difficult and time consuming. Unfortunately, in certain cases trying to collect on an outstanding debt can also be risky. The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (covering Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin)...
Recovering Attorneys’ Fees: Exception to the American Rule for ‘Wrongful Act’ of Breaching Contract
The Wisconsin Court of Appeals recently held that land contract purchasers who were brought into a foreclosure action by a bank against the land contract sellers could recover certain attorneys' fees from the sellers. The case is significant because the land contract...
Non-Compete Rules Apply to Agreement to Not Solicit Co-Workers
Businesses have long sought to protect their customer relationships. Accordingly, companies may try to restrict the ability of their employees to compete for those customers after the employment relationship terminates. Post-employment restrictions are typically set...
Sheriff’s Sale at 55% of Fair Market Value Does Not Shock the Conscience When Homeowners are Only Playing for Time
The Wisconsin Court of Appeals recently held in Green Tree Servicing v. Lorang (December 14, 2017) (per curiam), that a trial court did not erroneously exercise its discretion when it confirmed a sheriff's sale in a foreclosure action at a purchase price that was as...