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Public Records

Background Checks

• Caregivers / Guardians
  • Volunteer Guardians: Background Checks (Coalition of WI Aging Groups)
  • Caregiver Background & Criminal History Checks (WI Dept. of Health Services)
    • Caregiver Background Check Forms (WI Dept. of Health Services)
  • Caregiver Background Checks (WI Legislative Reference Bureau, 2000)
  • Law
    • WI Statutes: s. 48.685 "Criminal History and Child Abuse Record Search"
    • WI Statutes: s. 50.065 "Criminal History and Patient Abuse Record Search"
    • WI Admin. Code: DHS 12 "Caregiver Background Checks"
    • WI Admin. Code: DHS 12... Appendix A "Offenses Affecting Caregiver Eligibility"
      
      
• Court Records
  
  
• Criminal Records
  • Agencies
    • WI Crime Information Bureau (WI Dept. of Justice)
      • Criminal background checks
      • Frequently asked questions
  • Forms
    • Fingerprint Record Removal Request (WI Dept. of Justice)
    • Record Check Forms (WI Dept. of Justice)
  • Criminal Forms & Guides from Wisconsin Counties (WI State Law Library)
  • How Do I Obtain a Copy of My Criminal Record?
  • Navigating the Maze of Criminal Records Retrieval (LLRX article, 2001)
  • Online Information Sources (WI Crime Information Bureau)
    Information for criminal and background checks through agencies.
  • State Contact for Background Checks (WI Dept. of Justice)
  • To Catch a Thief (Virtual Chase)
  • World's Most Wanted: Fugitives & Unsolved Crimes, USA
    
    
• Delinquent Taxes
  • WI Delinquent Taxpayers (WI Dept. of Revenue)
    
    
• Employment
  • Background Checks & Other Workplace Privacy Resources (Privacy Rights Clearinghouse)
    Fact sheets, speeches, and articles concerning background checks of job seekers, employees, and volunteers.
  • Running Background Checks on Job Applicants (Nolo.com)
    Legal limits to information that may be gathered and used when making employment decisions
    
    
• Finding Information / People
  • How To Conduct a Background Check, pt. 1 (Virtual Chase)
  • How to Conduct a Background Check, pt. 2 (Virtual Chase)
  • People Finder Guide (Virtual Chase)
    Online sources of public records and people finding tools.
    
    
• Public Records

Court Records

• Wisconsin
  • Municipal Courts
    • City of Milwaukee Municipal Court Case Information
  • Circuit Courts
    • Circuit Court Access (Wisconsin Court System)
      Search WI criminal & civil circuit court records.
    • Circuit Court Forms (Wisconsin Court System)
      • GF-182 Concerning Removal of Case Records from Online Records because of Identity Theft or Mistaken Identity
      • GF-183 Concerning Removal of Address Information from Online Records
      • GF-184 Request to Correct Error in Court Records
    • Access to Court Records and Genealogy (WI Register in Probate Assoc.)
    • Forms from Wisconsin Counties (WI State Law Library)
  • Appellate Courts
    • Court Records (WI Supreme Court and Court of Appeals Case Access)
      Provides access to the status of appeals. Includes appeals considered "Open" from 1993-to date.
  • WI SCR 72 "Retention and Maintenance of Court Records"
• Federal
  • Federal Court Records on the Web (LLRX)
    Court documents & dockets from federal circuit, district, and bankruptcy courts.
  • PACER
    Obtain case & docket information from federal circuit, district, and bankruptcy courts.
• Privacy and Public Access to Court Records Resource Guide (National Center for State Courts)

Public Records

• Agencies
  • Wisconsin Public Records Board
• Opinions
  • On Point Case Summaries (2010-) (WI State Public Defender)
• Directories & Databases
  • BRB's Free Resource Center
    Federal, state, county & city websites where public records information can be accessed for free.
  • Search Systems: Public Record Databases $
• Forms
  • Sample Public Records Documents (WI Dept. of Justice)
• Municipal Records
  • Historical Municipal Records (WI Secretary of State)
• Introduction to Public Records Research
  Lengthy annotated guide that provides links to public records databases.
• Public Records in WI (WI Dept. of Administration)
• Public Records Legal Captions (League of Wisconsin Municipalities)
  Legal opinions since 1997 with notes and comments written by League staff attorneys.
• Public Records Resources (WI Dept. of Justice)
  Includes select Attorney General opinions, sample letters, and educational materials.
• Wisconsin Public Records Law, Wis. Stat. ss. 19.31-19.39: Compliance Outline (WI Dept. of Justice)

Birth, Death, Marriage, & Divorce Records

• Agencies
  • Wisconsin Vital Records Office (WI Dept. of Health Services)
    Information & forms for obtaining copies of birth, death, marriage & divorce records.
    
    Your county may also have forms specific to this topic. See Forms by County or contact your county's Register of Deeds.
  • Vital Records Information (WI Historical Society)
      
• Online Searchable Death Records & Indexes
• Social Security Death Index (Ancestry.com)
  Contains a listing of persons who had a Social Security number, who are deceased, and whose death was reported to the Social Security Administration
• Where to Write for Vital Records (National Center for Health Statistics)
• Vital Statistics
  • National Vital Statistics System (National Center for Health Statistics)
    Publications include: Vital Statistics of the United States
  • WI Births & Infant Death Statistics (WI Dept. of Health Services)
  • WI Life Expectancy Tables (WI Dept. of Health Services)
  • WI Marriages & Divorces (WI Dept. of Health Services)
  • WI Death Statistics (WI Dept. of Health Services)

Last Updated: June 10, 2013 | Up to Top