Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision – What the Decision Means for Developers, Homeowners, Conservationists, and Neighbors.

Clair Law is proud of its efforts in the recent 5-1 Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision, Gail Moreschi v. Village of Williams Bay and Town of Linn ETZ Zoning Board of Appeals, William L. Edwards and Suzanne Edwards, 2020 WI 95. The filed written decision can be found at the following link: https://www.wicourts.gov/sc/opinion/DisplayDocument.pdf?content=pdf&seqN...

Although ultimately unsuccessful in its appeal, Clair Law continues to maintain that the practical effect of the Supreme Court’s decision puts developers, builders, homeowners, conservationists, and aggrieved neighbors in a precarious position.

On December 30, 2020, the Supreme Court of Wisconsin provided clarity on the triggering event for the thirty-day deadline to file a writ of certiorari appeal to a local board decision under Wis. Stat. §62.23(7)(e)10. The majority opinion concluded that the triggering event occurs upon the Board’s filing of a written copy of the decision is filed in the board’s offices. This clarified the practical understanding that the deadline began to run at the time of the oral decision by the board in its open session meetings.

Effectively, the Court’s decision provides local municipalities with freedom to finalize their decisions in written form at their convenience. The practical effect of this decision means an aggrieved party is fighting an extremely uphill battle to overturn a construction project that has been ongoing since the time of the oral decision. Similarly, the homeowner and/or contractor risks having their construction project torn up should a writ of certiorari action be successful. Unless, in an impractical and uneconomic alternative, they sit on their project waiting for the local board to finalize its written determination to ensure their project will go forward unimpeded.

The attorneys at Clair Law fought hard on behalf of our client and will continue to fight hard for developers, homeowners, and neighbors aggrieved by unsupported decisions of local boards.
Please feel free to contact our office to discuss how we can help with your legal issues related to zoning, planning, and real estate in Walworth County, Wisconsin.