Shirley Schlanger Abrahamson was the 25th chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. An American lawyer and jurist, she was appointed to the court in 1976 by Governor Patrick Lucey, becoming the first female justice to serve on Wisconsin's highest court. She became the court's first female chief justice on August 1, 1996, and served in that capacity until April 29, 2015. In all, she served on the court for 43 years (1976–2019), making her the longest-serving justice in the history of the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in Wisconsin. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over original actions, appeals from lower courts, and regulation or administration of the practice of law in Wisconsin.
Jon P. Wilcox is an American lawyer and retired judge. He was a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court for 15 years, appointed by Governor Tommy G. Thompson in 1992 and leaving office in 2007. Prior to his time on the Supreme Court, he served for 13 years as a Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge, including seven years as Chief Judge of the 6th Judicial Administrative District of Wisconsin Circuit Courts. Earlier, he represented Green Lake and Waushara counties in the Wisconsin State Assembly as a Republican.
Ann Walsh Bradley is an American lawyer and jurist, and the longest currently-serving justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. She was elected to the Supreme Court in 1995 and was re-elected in 2005 and 2015. She has announced she will not run for re-election again; her term expires July 31, 2025. She previously served ten years as a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Marathon County, Wisconsin.
Neil Patrick Crooks was an American lawyer. He was a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court from 1996 until his death in 2015. He was appointed as a county judge by a Democratic governor, later professing conservatism as a Supreme Court candidate in 1995 and 1996. In his later years, Crooks gained notice as a perceived judicial moderate and swing vote on a court otherwise divided into two ideological blocs.
David Thomas Prosser Jr. is an American jurist and politician who served as Speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1995 to 1996, and as a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court from 1998 to 2016. He was an advisor to Wisconsin Assembly speaker Robin Vos as Vos sought a rationale for impeaching current Wisconsin Supreme Court justice Janet Protasiewicz.
Annette Kingsland Ziegler is an American jurist serving as chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court since May 2021. She has been a member of the court since 2007, and is generally regarded as part of its conservative wing. Ziegler served as a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Washington County from 1997 to 2007.
Ralph Adam Fine was an American lawyer, judge, author, and television personality. He served as a judge on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals for the last 26 years of his life, after serving 9 years as a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Milwaukee County.
Brad Schimel is an American lawyer, judge, and Republican politician. He was the 44th attorney general of Wisconsin, serving from 2015 to 2019. He was defeated seeking re-election in 2018, and was subsequently appointed a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Waukesha County, by Governor Scott Walker. Schimel is seeking election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in the 2025 Spring election. He also previously served as district attorney of Waukesha County.
Daniel Kelly is an American attorney and former judge who served as a Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice from August 1, 2016, through July 31, 2020.
Rebecca Frank Dallet is an American lawyer and a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Prior to her 2018 election, she served ten years as a Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge in Milwaukee County. Earlier in her career she worked as a prosecutor and appointed court official.
Jill Judith Karofsky is an American attorney who has served as a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court since 2020. Karofsky served as a Wisconsin Circuit Court judge in Dane County from 2017 until her 2020 election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
The 2015 Wisconsin Spring Election was held in the U.S. state of Wisconsin on April 7, 2015. There was a contested election for justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, as well as several other nonpartisan local and judicial elections and an amendment to the Constitution of Wisconsin to change the process for selection of the chief justice of the State Supreme Court. In addition, the ballot contained a special election to fill a vacancy in the 20th State Senate district. The 2015 Wisconsin Spring Primary was held February 17, 2015.
Shelley Ann Grogan is an American lawyer and judge, currently serving on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals in the Waukesha-based District II court. She previously served as a municipal judge in Muskego, Wisconsin.
The 2023 Wisconsin Spring Election was held in the U.S. state of Wisconsin on April 4, 2023. The featured race at the top of the ticket was for an open seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which became the most expensive judicial election in history. Several other nonpartisan local and judicial offices were also decided on the April 4 ballot, including mayoral elections in some of Wisconsin's larger cities—Green Bay, Madison, and Racine. In addition, a special election was held in the 8th State Senate district, concurrent with the Spring elections. The 2023 Wisconsin Spring Primary was held February 21, 2023.
The 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election was held on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, to elect a justice to the Wisconsin Supreme Court for a ten-year term. Milwaukee County circuit judge Janet Protasiewicz defeated former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice Daniel Kelly, effectively flipping the ideological balance of the court from a conservative to liberal majority.
Jennifer R. Dorow is an American attorney from Wisconsin. She is a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Waukesha County, serving since 2011. She previously served as chief judge of the 3rd district of Wisconsin circuit courts (2017–2023). In 2022, she presided over the trial of Darrell Brooks Jr., the perpetrator of the Waukesha Christmas parade attack, which received national news coverage. Following that trial, Dorow ran for a vacant seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, but was eliminated in the primary.
Janet Claire Protasiewicz is an American attorney and jurist from Wisconsin who has served as a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court since August 2023. Protasiewicz was elected to the court in the 2023 election, after previously serving as a Milwaukee County circuit court judge in from 2014 to 2023 and as an assistant district attorney in Milwaukee for 26 years.
Impeachment in Wisconsin is the main process by which the Wisconsin Legislature can bring charges and decide whether to remove state officers from their positions. A simple majority of the Wisconsin State Assembly can impeach an officer, after which the Wisconsin Senate acts as the court of trial, where a two-thirds majority is required to convict. In the event of a conviction, the punishment may be removal from office or removal and disqualification to hold state office.
The 2013 Wisconsin Spring Election was held in the U.S. state of Wisconsin on April 2, 2013. There were contested elections for justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and Superintendent of Public Instruction, as well as several other nonpartisan local and judicial elections. In addition, the ballot contained a special election to fill a vacancy in the 98th Assembly district. The 2013 Wisconsin Spring Primary was held February 19, 2013.
