The Wisconsin State Legislature has adopted rules governing when and to what extent a party to litigation is entitled to recover attorney's fees from the other party. This is an oversimplification, but Wisconsin generally follows what is known as "the American Rule", meaning the parties bear the cost of their own legal counsel. This rule is modified somewhat by Wisconsin Statutes Section 814.04. This statute sets the recovery of attorneys fees in most actions to a very small amount, usually less than $500. There are many important exceptions to this general rule.
I have attempted to aggregate as many of the exceptions to the rule as I could find and list a descriptive name along with the relevant fee-shifting statute below. At the bottom of this guide I have provided a link to the Wisconsin State Legislature's searchable database of statutes. Please know that while this list is an effort at identifying as many fee shifting statutes in Wisconsin as possible (please send suggestions for additions, deletions and changes to the guide to nickpasse@gmail.com), even I do not believe it is an exhaustive list.
If you have a case you are involved in or you may soon be involved in litigation, you should consult with at least one attorney to determine what full representation might cost, whether a limited representation might be available, what the risks and benefits of any representation might be, what the risks and benefits of proceeding through the litigation unrepresented might be and if there might be ways of recovering any attorney's fees you if you are successful in your lawsuit. Attorneys trying to determine if there are cost-shifting provisions available for a certain case should consult with other attorneys in the practice area if a search of the relevant statutes has not turned anything up. I hope to improve the list of cost-shifting provisions below in the future so I am especially hopeful that you attorneys reading this list will offer suggestions for additions, deletions and changes to the list to me at nickpasse@gmail.com - thanks!)
Source: http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/under-what-circumstances-can-i-recover-attorneys-fees-in-wisconsin
I have attempted to aggregate as many of the exceptions to the rule as I could find and list a descriptive name along with the relevant fee-shifting statute below. At the bottom of this guide I have provided a link to the Wisconsin State Legislature's searchable database of statutes. Please know that while this list is an effort at identifying as many fee shifting statutes in Wisconsin as possible (please send suggestions for additions, deletions and changes to the guide to nickpasse@gmail.com), even I do not believe it is an exhaustive list.
If you have a case you are involved in or you may soon be involved in litigation, you should consult with at least one attorney to determine what full representation might cost, whether a limited representation might be available, what the risks and benefits of any representation might be, what the risks and benefits of proceeding through the litigation unrepresented might be and if there might be ways of recovering any attorney's fees you if you are successful in your lawsuit. Attorneys trying to determine if there are cost-shifting provisions available for a certain case should consult with other attorneys in the practice area if a search of the relevant statutes has not turned anything up. I hope to improve the list of cost-shifting provisions below in the future so I am especially hopeful that you attorneys reading this list will offer suggestions for additions, deletions and changes to the list to me at nickpasse@gmail.com - thanks!)
Source: http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/under-what-circumstances-can-i-recover-attorneys-fees-in-wisconsin
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