In a body blow to open and transparent government and the ability of citizen watchdog groups and journalists, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-3 last summer that a Waukesha community group, Friends of Frame Park, was not entitled to attorney fees after suing the city of Waukesha for public records that the city later released before being ordered to do so by a court.
To recover attorney fees under Wisconsin’s public records law, a records requester “must obtain a judicially sanctioned change” in the relationship between the requester and the custodian of the records, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled.
To recover attorney fees under Wisconsin’s public records law, a records requester “must obtain a judicially sanctioned change” in the relationship between the requester and the custodian of the records, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled