Too quick to sue: Are lawmakers turning to the courts too often?

 

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- In a state that's deeply divided, many Wisconsinites believe our political system is broken.

It comes as many contentious issues these days are being resolved through the courts, which in turn, has resulted in our judicial system becoming more prominent than ever before.

CBS 58 interviewed top legislative leaders and political experts about whether they believe the state is relying too much on one branch of government to resolve some of the most pressing issues, and if there's room for change.

Too Quick to Sue?

Typically, before someone decides to file a lawsuit, they try to resolve their dispute out of court. However, with a Democratic governor and Republicans in control of the Legislature, reaching consensus has been difficult at times.

It's why there's been a dramatic increase in the number of lawsuits being filed since 2018 when Gov. Tony Evers denied then-Gov. Scott Walker a third term, marking an end to Republican grip on state government.

And since then, both sides agree, suing one another to get results is a growing problem.

"This idea that Gov. Evers can't succeed in convincing the Legislature to pass a bill he wants, or we can't convince him to pass a bill we want, that we're going to run to the court and sue over it…that's just wrong," Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said. "It shouldn't be that way."

During the 2021-2022 legislative session, only seven Democratic bills received a public hearing in the Assembly, according to Rep. Greta Neubauer, the Assembly Minority Leader.

"I think everyone can agree that is a problem," said Neubauer.

So, are conservative and liberals too quick to sue nowadays if they can't get their agenda through the Legislature and signed by the governor?

Steve Walters, who covered the state Capitol since 1988, said yes and believes it's becoming the new norm not only in Wisconsin, but nationally.

"It's been really intriguing to me as a political junkie and someone who spent 32 years covering the capitol to see the growing importance of the judicial branch of government," said Walters. "It's just utterly amazing."

Judicial elections have become more significant and expensive in recent years largely due to what's at stake.

Last year's state Supreme Court election was the most expensive in U.S. history, surpassing $45 million between liberal candidate Janet Protasiewicz and Dan Kelly, a former conservative justice.

It was an election that largely focused on abortion rights and reconfiguring the state legislative maps, a process known as redistricting. Protasiewicz won by 11 points, flipping the conservative majority to liberal for the first time in 15 years.

One day after liberals gained control of the state's highest court, voting rights groups filed a lawsuit seeking to have the state’s legislative maps declared unconstitutional for favoring Republicans.

Four months later, the court struck down the maps and ordered that new district boundary lines be drawn.

Walters said, judicial elections are "the price of democracy" but also "the way democracy was framed" under the three branches of government.

Can things change?

Is there a solution to this new era of politics or should Wisconsinites expect the courts to have the final say on issues such as abortion, election law, and redistricting?

Democrats believe new legislative boundaries that create more competitive legislative districts could help.

"We win some [lawsuits], they win some but at the end of the day, I do believe a lot of that will be taken care of with appropriate maps in the state of Wisconsin," said Evers.

Neubauer agrees and said new maps “will mean there’s a renewed sense of necessity for bipartisan collaboration.”

David Canon, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is skeptical about how much of an impact redistricting could have.

"I think the surge in the number of lawsuits in recent years is due to forces that are broader than the nature of our legislative districts," Canon said. "Even with fair maps, it is likely that we would still have Republican control of the state legislature and thus, divided government."

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu also doubted it would drastically change how state government functions and expressed “real concerns” about how the courts may end up overturning a host-of laws enacted by Republicans under a new liberal majority.

"A lot of these lawsuits have gone through the courts before and have found most of these issues constitutional," LeMahieu said. "It seems like the executive branch and the judicial branch might be moving towards, like eliminating the third branch of government. Not caring what laws have been passed in the past whether it's Act 10, our maps -- who knows what's next."