Jay Donald Jerde

We remember Magna Carta as an early, shining beacon of justice that led to a better world. It was not the only progress of those times toward rule under law. Change was in the air in the 13th century. The barons were not the only ones unhappy with the current law.

What does one do when one regularly sees robins twitching and dying on one’s lawn? The people described in "Banning DDT" decided to act against entrenched scientific expertise and won. The subtitle, "How Citizen Activists in Wisconsin Led the Way," describes the author’s approach. The book does not follow a pure chronology, nor does it provide in-depth coverage of the scientific or administrative law aspects of the successful effort to ban DDT in Wisconsin. It can be difficult to know when we… Show more

What does one do when one regularly sees robins twitching and dying on one’s lawn? The people described in "Banning DDT" decided to act against entrenched scientific expertise and won. The subtitle, "How Citizen Activists in Wisconsin Led the Way," describes the author’s approach. The book does not follow a pure chronology, nor does it provide in-depth coverage of the scientific or administrative law aspects of the successful effort to ban DDT in Wisconsin. It can be difficult to know when we are in the story. Instead, this history presents an impressionistic view. The story moves forward in mini-biographies of ordinary, concerned Wisconsinites who built the groundswell for banning. We meet these people, and they become flesh-and-blood actors who are transformed. Show less

In the future, law may change at the speed of light. Freed from the tedious editing and printing of books, only the movement of electrons will stand in the way. Fifteen months have passed since 2013 Wisconsin Act 20 made a subtle change in Wisconsin Statutes. The Act empowers statutes on the Legislative Reference Bureau’s web site to be as official as the statutes in the books. In January, the Wisconsin Administrative Register and Wisconsin Administrative Code will become electronic-only State… Show more

In the future, law may change at the speed of light. Freed from the tedious editing and printing of books, only the movement of electrons will stand in the way. Fifteen months have passed since 2013 Wisconsin Act 20 made a subtle change in Wisconsin Statutes. The Act empowers statutes on the Legislative Reference Bureau’s web site to be as official as the statutes in the books. In January, the Wisconsin Administrative Register and Wisconsin Administrative Code will become electronic-only State publications. Official electronic statutes will have broader effects, for the public and for lawyers, transforming the nature of legal research and the perception of law. Show less

A tool as dry as an affidavit can lose a case. Beginning with Palisades Collection LLC v. Kalal in 2010, about two dozen Wisconsin appellate cases have been won or lost based on affidavit sufficiency in creditors’ actions, including several cases decided in 2013. The lessons apply beyond credit-debtor relationships to any business that creates and maintains records necessary to support claims.

Air Engineering, Inc. v. Industrial Air Power, LLC, 2013 WI APP 18, review denied, 2013 WI 80 (June 14, 2013) is a warning to keep track of how changes in technology may undermine limitations in existing contracts. At issue here was whether an insurer had a duty to defend on a claim of advertising injury from the use of search engine tools that optimized sales generation. The Wisconsin Court of Appeals found a duty to defend although the key components of the advertising idea were Internet… Show more

Air Engineering, Inc. v. Industrial Air Power, LLC, 2013 WI APP 18, review denied, 2013 WI 80 (June 14, 2013) is a warning to keep track of how changes in technology may undermine limitations in existing contracts. At issue here was whether an insurer had a duty to defend on a claim of advertising injury from the use of search engine tools that optimized sales generation. The Wisconsin Court of Appeals found a duty to defend although the key components of the advertising idea were Internet coding. This is an issue to watch for in the future as new Internet apps and portable hardware transform how people communicate. Show less

Marketing legal services is not the same as selling toothpaste. "Professional Services Marketing 3.0" quickly educates the busy lawyer on the unique nature of service marketing to improve the effectiveness of client development.

Zimbrick, Inc. v. State Division of Hearings and Appeals, No. 2011AP1208 (Wis. Ct. App., Feb. 23, 2012) (unpublished decision) warns of the limitations of using administrative decisions as precedent. Zimbrick used previous agency rulings about automotive dealerships to support its case. The Court of Appeals disagreed. Attorneys in administrative practice should be careful of the weight they place on the words of the Division of Hearings and Appeals.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court in MBS-Certified Public Accountants, LLC v. Wisconsin Bell Inc., 2012 WI 15, prevented the use of the voluntary payment doctrine as a defense when the customer's complaint about the paid charges was for "cramming," a deceptive billing practice of placing small, inconspicuous, unauthorized charges into a bill. Application of the doctrine would defeat statutes against cramming, but the analysis is statute-specific. The doctrine lives still.

What if the bank crisis of 2008 was a wake-up alarm – and America hit the snooze button? Eliot Spitzer is trying to rouse the American people to have a “serious conversation about government’s proper role in the market.” This book, easily read in a few hours, invites the discussion.

A summary of the Public Service Commission regulations on wind farm siting in the form in which they were first presented to the Wisconsin Legislature.

This Casenote analyzes the lengthy, tortuous history of relations between Anglo-Americans and the Oneida Indian Nation as those struggles appeared in the U.S. Supreme Court review of Oneida Indian Nation v. City of Sherrill, 337 F.3d 139 (2d Cir. 2003), rev’d, 544 U.S. 197, 125 S. Ct. 1478, 161 L. Ed. 2d 386 (2005). Central to the case were the relationships between municipalities and Indian Nations, and between Federal, Tribal, and State jurisdictions. Among the arguments in favor of the… Show more

This Casenote analyzes the lengthy, tortuous history of relations between Anglo-Americans and the Oneida Indian Nation as those struggles appeared in the U.S. Supreme Court review of Oneida Indian Nation v. City of Sherrill, 337 F.3d 139 (2d Cir. 2003), rev’d, 544 U.S. 197, 125 S. Ct. 1478, 161 L. Ed. 2d 386 (2005). Central to the case were the relationships between municipalities and Indian Nations, and between Federal, Tribal, and State jurisdictions. Among the arguments in favor of the Oneidas is a form of administrative policy estoppel: one should not use against a regulated group the record as described by government employees operating under prior administrative policies that have later been rejected. Show less