Wisconsin State Law Library - Judicial Council Overview

Judicial Council Collection (JCC)	Wisconsin State Law Library
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What is the Judicial Council?	Why search the JCC?	How do I get the full-text of an item?
What is the JCC?	How do I search the JCC?	Other Sources of JC information.

What is the Judicial Council?

Chapter 392 of the Wisconsin Laws of 1951 created the Judicial Council. The Council was charged to:

“Observe and study the rules of pleading, practice and procedure, and advise the supreme court as to changes which will, in the council’s judgment, simplify procedure and promote a speedy determination of litigation upon its merits. Make a continuous survey and study of the organization, jurisdiction and methods of administration and operation of all the courts of the state, both courts of record and others, the volume and condition of business in said courts, the work accomplished and the results obtained. Collect, compile, analyze and publish judicial statistics. Receive, consider and in its discretion investigate suggestions from any source pertaining to the administration of justice and to make recommendations. Keep advised concerning the decisions of the courts relating to the procedure and practice therein and concerning pending legislation affecting the organization, jurisdiction, operation, procedure and practice of the courts. Recommend to the legislature any changes in the organization, jurisdiction, operation and methods of conducting the business of the courts which can be put into effect only by legislative action”. – 1951 Wis. Laws 392

The 1995-97 biennial budget, 1995 Wis. Act 27, removed funding for Judicial Council staff positions and reassigned the duties of the Judicial Council to the Judicial Commission.

The 2007-09 biennial budget, in 2007 Wisconsin Act 20, restored the Judicial Council’s independence from the Commission, and re-appropriated funding for a full-time Judicial Council Staff Attorney.

Go to the Judicial Council's Website

What is the Judicial Council Collection?

The Judicial Council donates its files to the Wisconsin State Law Library (WSLL) ; the files are referred to as the Judicial Council Collection. The Collection contains over 6,400 items and consists of Council minutes, committee records and proceedings, correspondence, and subject materials. Council minutes date from 1954-1972 and Jan. 1983- present. A majority of the committee records, proceedings, and subject materials date from 1970-1995. Correspondence files cover 1962-1995.

WSLL owns Judicial Council biennial reports from 1953-1969, statistical reports from 1952-1969, and other selected reports in addition to the JCC. Contact Reference Staff or search the online catalog for more information about these reports.

Why search the JCC?

The JCC is an excellent source for legislative histories of court-related statutes and rules. Items within the collection may illustrate intent or discuss issues in connection with these statutes and rules. Items include:

Summary of Proceedings
Summary of Proceedings are the meeting minutes of individual committees and appear in the committee folders. Proceedings often contain a wealth of information about the Committee's thoughts, methods, and progress. They may also contain addendums that are nowhere else in the collection.

Judicial Council Minutes
Judicial Council Minutes contain reports from individual committees. These reports often contain the Committee’s thoughts, testimony from people invited to appear before the Council, reactions, and progress information.

Correspondence
Correspondence may be found both within the committee/subject folders and the General Correspondence Files. Items may contain comments on Council recommendations or the work of a committee, as well as topics that should be addressed by the Council.

How Do I Search the JCC?

Note: Judicial Council Minutes and General Correspondence cannot be searched electronically. See Search Tips below for further information.

Search JCC's Table of Contents

Select a committee/subject listed below or search all committees/subjects (retrieval time may be lengthy).
Use your browser's Find command to locate keywords in the table of contents.

Explorer users: Under Edit, select Find. Enter your keywords and click on Find Next. (Do not check the Match case or Find whole word only options).

Netscape users: Under Edit, select Find in Page. Enter your keywords and click on Find Next. (Do not check Match case).

Note the committee name or subject, folder number, and item number.

Committees/Subjects

Alternative Dispute Resolution	Evidence and Procedure Committee	Insanity Defense Committee	Publication of Decisions Committee
Appellate Procedures Committee	Evidence: Rape Shield	Internal Operating Procedures Conference	Publication of Supreme Court Rules Committee
Awards of Appreciation	Evidence, Rules of	Judge Substitution	Records and Forms
Citation System, Proposed	Extraordinary Remedies Committee	Judicial Council, General	Records Disposal
Civil Procedure Committee, Rules of	Federal Rules Committee	Judicial Rotation Committee	Restitution
Contempt and Extraordinary Remedies Committee	Federal Rules Subcommittee	Jury Communications	Small Claims Committee
Court Administration Committee	Garnishment	Jury Communications. Guilty Plea Subcommittee	Standards of Criminal Justice Committee
Court Commissioners Committee	General Projects Child/Witnesses Study	Juvenile Recoupment	State Property Insurance
Court Reorganization	General Projects Committee	Petitions	Statute of Limitations
Court Rules	General Projects Committee, Criminal Appeals	Petitions, Regarding	Telephone Committee
Disability of Justice Committee	Guardian Ad Litem Committee	Preliminary Examinations Committee	Telephone/Fax
Evidence	Homicide	Probate Committee	Videotape Statements
Evidence and Civil Procedure Committee	Homicide and Lesser Included Offenses	Provisional Remedies Committee	Rules of Wisconsin Videotape Procedure
Evidence: Health Care Provider Records	Homicide Committee, State Bar

Search Tips

You can search only the JCC Table of Contents; full-text searching is not available.
Statute numbers, dates, personal names, as well as other keywords, are searchable.
Judicial Council Minutes and the General Correspondence Files cannot be searched using the above JCC Table of Contents. Both may be browsed in house. Ask Reference Staff for assistance.

How Do I Get the Full-Text of an Item?

Remote Users

Note the committee name or subject, folder number, and item number.
Contact Reference Staff to request a copy of the item.

In House Users

Note the committee name or subject, folder number, and item number.
Ask Reference Staff for assistance.

Other Sources of Judicial Council Materials

The Wisconsin Historical Society also holds Judicial Council materials. The Society has Council minutes from 1951-1959, 1968-1970, 1974, 1978, 1982-1988, and correspondence from 1952-1967. The Society has the Court Reorganization Files dating from 1911-1977 which include records of the Wisconsin Bar Association’s Committee on Uniformity of Courts, 1942-1951. Contact the Wisconsin Historical Society for more information.

Comments: Webmaster
Last revised: November 3, 2020