Wisconsin Supreme Court reduces time evictions remain on record
MILWAUKEE - If you’re looking for an apartment, lawyers representing Milwaukee’s poorest say an eviction record can be like a scarlet letter.
Now, a decision by Wisconsin’s highest court is cutting down the amount of time certain eviction records are kept public by the courts.
In Milwaukee County Small Claims Court, there’s a flurry of activity not seen since March 2020. Eviction cases are, once again, being held in-person instead of over Zoom. The switch happened on Aug. 14. Between its three commissioners, Milwaukee County Circuit Court hears upwards of 120 eviction cases a day.
How long a tenant may suffer an eviction’s consequences was up to a higher court on Oct. 9.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court considered a petition asking that they, "shorten the record retention period for eviction cases in which no money judgment is ordered to one year."
After some discussion, the court voted in favor of a modified version of the petition. It increased the retention period from one year to two years.
In other words, the eviction will disappear from the tenant’s record on the state court website, used by landlords to screen applicants after two years. The current rule says 20 years.
"It appears that, based on the information brought to us, that twenty is not working," said Justice Rebecca Dallet.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court split over its decision, four to three, liberals to conservatives. Among those in dissent was Justice Brian Hagedorn.
"It just feels odd to me that we as a court would step in and close access to public records as the response to this issue," said Hagedorn.
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At Legal Action of Wisconsin, attorney Carmen Ayers is celebrating.
"As a Black woman, I’m happy to see that at least some barriers against us are going to be removed," said Ayers.
Carmen Ayers
The free legal service brought forth the petition. It says evictions have a disproportionate impact on people of color and women. Legal Action of Wisconsin says retaining eviction records for twenty years can force tenants into lower quality housing and reinforce segregation.
"People are being denied housing," said Ayers. "We have a housing crisis going on right now."
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Heiner Giese, speaking on behalf of the Rental Property Association of Wisconsin (RPA), says RPA is ok with keeping these kinds of evictions on record for two years.
"We certainly didn’t like the one year," said Giese. "It was much too short."
Heiner Giese
Giese recognizes not all landlords may agree with the Supreme Court’s decision.
"There’s a good number of landlords that probably prefer to have at least a three-year or a five-year rule," said Giese.
Giese says the decision aligns the court with a legislative policy passed in 2018 that they supported. If an evicted tenant owes the landlord money for back-rent or court costs, the court record will remain for twenty years.
The rule change won’t go into effect immediately, as the court still needs to draft the order. The justices may want to write opinions. That could happen next year or in 2025.