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Recent Blog Posts
Can You Get in Trouble For Drinking on Your Private Boat in Wisconsin?
Whether you are speed boating in the expansive waters of Lake Michigan or fishing in a smaller lake or river, Wisconsin offers boating enthusiasts endless opportunities to spend time on the water. People often wait all year for the chance to spend summer days relaxing in their boats. Many people enjoy bringing alcohol onto their boat, and while responsible alcohol use can lead to great memories with family and friends, irresponsible use can lead to accidents, injuries, and charges of boating under the influence. If you have been charged with a BUI, it is essential to speak with a Wisconsin criminal defense attorney who can help you understand your legal options.
What are the Consequences of Boating Under the Influence?
Although boating under the influence can carry less severe consequences than driving under the influence, charges are still serious, especially for repeat offenders. First time offenders face a fine between $150 and $300. Second offenses, however, face between five days and six months in jail and fines between $300 and $1,000. Punishments steadily increase for continued offenses and, if an accident involving serious bodily injury or death occurred while boating under the influence, the person responsible may face up to a year in prison, fines up to $2,000, and any other criminal or civil penalties associated with the accident (such as property damage, personal injury, etc.).
Three Tips for Reducing Conflict in Your Waukesha Divorce
In our last blog, we looked at signs that could indicate you may be headed for a high-conflict divorce in Wisconsin. However, even in situations where spouses fought continuously before deciding to get divorced, there are steps that can be taken during the divorce process to reduce conflict. By the time you talk to a divorce attorney, ending your relationship may be inevitable, but a quarrelsome divorce does not have to be.
Stay Off Social Media
The tendency to share every aspect of our lives on social media might be nice when it comes to pictures of your kids and your home renovations, but airing your dirty laundry when you are in the midst of a divorce is a terrible idea. Not only does it make your friends and family uncomfortable, but it can antagonize relationships with your soon-to-be ex, their family, and your mutual friends. This can lead to further conflict, as your ex may try to document your social media behavior and use it against you during divorce proceedings. Generally speaking, the less social media activity during divorce, the better.
Five Signs You May Be Headed for a High-Conflict Divorce in Wisconsin
Certain types of behaviors can make someone very difficult to be married to. Blaming others, black-and-white thinking, lack of ability to take responsibility for one’s actions and consequences, and a tendency to engage in risky behaviors are all associated with high-conflict relationships. Unfortunately, these behaviors tend to get worse during divorce and people who were unable to manage conflict during a marriage are likely to be hostile and difficult to work with in a divorce. Here are five behaviors from your spouse that could indicate you may be headed towards a high-conflict divorce in Milwaukee County.
Your Spouse Has to Be Right All the Time
Everybody likes to be right, but when one partner always insists on being correct and never apologizes for their mistakes or shortcomings, divorce can be very difficult. A crucial part of divorce is compromise, which includes admitting that the other person’s perspective is legitimate and worth consideration. If your spouse cannot do this during your marriage, they are unlikely to start doing so during divorce.
Are Battery and Assault the Same in Wisconsin?
The terms “battery” and “assault” are often used interchangeably when people talk about criminal charges for acts of physical violence, but these two terms are not the same and describe behavior with different legal consequences. Because they are both violent offenses with serious criminal penalties, it is important to understand the difference between battery and assault if you have been charged with one or both of these crimes.
Battery
Battery is an act of force intended to cause bodily harm. “Bodily harm” includes, but is not limited to bruises, cuts, burns, hair loss, or illness. Charges of simple battery that do not involve great bodily harm are usually punished as misdemeanors that can carry up to nine months in jail and up to $10,000 in fines. If you used a weapon, or even just threatened to use one, you could face additional jail time of up to six months.
Wisconsin Legislature Increases Consequences for Distributing Fentanyl
As the opioid overdose epidemic continues to rage across America and potential policy suggestions are a topic of heated discussion and debate, Wisconsin had 1,227 opioid deaths in 2021 and the Wisconsin legislature has decided to take action. In a new law, Wisconsin has now increased the consequences for being convicted of fentanyl distribution, making the penalties similar to those for distributing heroin. As public health authorities struggle to get a handle on this serious issue, they are hoping that increased punishments will deter at least some distributors and keep those who are caught behind bars longer. If you have been accused of possessing, manufacturing, or distributing fentanyl or heroin in Wisconsin, it is essential to understand the consequences of a conviction.
Penalties for Distributing Fentanyl in Wisconsin
Could I Be Arrested for Switching Price Tags in Wisconsin?
When someone is arrested for switching price tags in a retail store, it is usually a young adult who thinks little of the action and may even be doing it as a dare or a joke with friends. This behavior, however, constitutes criminal retail theft and has serious consequences. Whether you are the parent of a teen accused of this behavior or have been accused of it yourself, it is important to take the charges seriously and to have an experienced Wisconsin criminal defense attorney representing you.
How Serious Are the Charges for Price Tag Switching?
While someone who switched price tags may have paid for, or tried to pay for, the merchandise and therefore may believe they did not really steal it, price tag switching is seen as a form of retail theft. Someone who hides some merchandise inside of other merchandise which they pay for, puts merchandise in their pockets, or wears merchandise like clothing under their own clothing to conceal it, has also committed an act of retail theft.
Can I Fire My Wisconsin Divorce Attorney?
Choosing a divorce attorney is an important decision that can have an impact on your life long after your Wisconsin divorce is finalized. While Wisconsin state law is the same for every divorcing couple, the advocacy of a great divorce lawyer can make a major difference in the quality and outcome of both the divorce process and the final divorce decree. If you are unhappy with your current attorney, you may want to make a change; here is an overview of the process.
Common Reasons People Fire Their Divorce Lawyers
Ideally, your attorney will work hard on your behalf and respond to you in a timely manner. They should show interest in your case and be advocating for your best interests. Unfortunately, attorneys are normal people, and they have professional shortcomings just like everyone else. Here are some common reasons you might fire your divorce attorney:
- The attorney responds to your calls or emails very slowly or stops responding altogether
When Will a Wisconsin Court Terminate Parental Rights?
Wisconsin law recognizes the importance of both parents’ involvement in a child’s life whenever possible. Terminating parental rights is taken seriously and only done in extreme circumstances. Sometimes parental rights are terminated because a judge is convinced that a parent cannot safely remain in their child’s life; other times, a parent willingly gives up their parental rights. Regardless of whether you feel your parental rights are threatened or you believe your child’s other parent should lose their parental rights, a child custody attorney can help you navigate the emotional and procedural complexities of terminating parental rights in Wisconsin.
Involuntary Termination
Involuntary termination of parental rights usually happens when one parent has serious concerns about the other parent’s fitness. Wisconsin law allows termination of parental rights in several circumstances, including but not limited to:
Three Facts about Child Support Calculations in Wisconsin
As gender roles continue becoming more egalitarian and women are now often the primary breadwinner in a family, child support laws have changed to reflect the fact that many families often no longer have the traditional structure of a stay-at-home mother and working father. Rather than giving a mother full custody after a divorce and requiring only the father to pay child support, Wisconsin law now expects both parents to financially support their children and be actively involved in raising them unless there is a good reason to do otherwise. If you are getting divorced and want to learn more about child support laws in Wisconsin, read on.
Primary Placement Requires Higher Payments
Wisconsin follows the Shared Placement formula to determine child support payments. Payments are based on how many children are involved and how much time each parent spends with the children. If one parent has custody more than 75 percent of the time, he or she is considered to be the residential parent and has primary placement. While both parents are responsible for financially providing for their children, the parent with primary placement will necessarily receive larger child support payments as he or she has the children with them most of the time. But even when spouses share placement 50/50, one spouse usually pays the other child support.
Is It Possible for an Unmarried Father to Have Shared Custody in Wisconsin?
Few changes have the potential to affect a man like becoming a father for the first time. If you have recently discovered that you are or will be a father, congratulations - now is the time to start thinking about establishing a legal relationship with your child so you can ensure you have the best chance of developing a lifetime of love and support. Wisconsin law recognizes the importance of fathers in the development of a minor child’s health and well-being and encourages fathers to be present in their child’s life whenever possible. To learn more about father’s custodial rights in Wisconsin, read on.
Establish Paternity
The most important thing you can do when initiating a case for child custody or placement is to establish that you are, in fact, the father of the child. You can do this using a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Parentage when a child is born. If your child’s mother does not cooperate, you can also establish paternity through a court order, often using a DNA test.
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