895.05 Annotation
Publishers' privileges and liabilities regarding libel are discussed. Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc.
418 U.S. 323.
895.05 Annotation
A public figure who sues media companies for libel may inquire into the editorial processes of those responsible when proof of "actual malice" is required for recovery. Herbert v. Lando,
441 U.S. 153 (1979).
895.05 Annotation
The "public figure" principle in libel cases is discussed. Wolston v. Reader's Digest Assn., Inc.
443 U.S. 157 (1979).
895.05 Annotation
If wire service accounts of a judge's remarks are substantially accurate, a defamation suit by the judge is barred under sub. (1). Simonson v. United Press Intern., Inc.
500 F. Supp 1261 (1980).
895.05 Annotation
Defamation law of Wisconsin. Brody, 65 MLR 505 (1982).
895.05 Annotation
The "public interest or concern" test: Have we resurrected a standard that should have remained in the graveyard? 70 MLR 647 (1987).
895.052
895.052
Defamation by radio and television. The owner, licensee or operator of a visual or sound radio broadcasting station or network of stations, and the agents or employees of any such owner, licensee or operator, shall not be liable in damages for any defamatory statement published or uttered in, or as a part of, a visual or sound broadcast by a candidate for political office in those instances in which, under the acts of congress or the rules and regulations of the federal communications commission, the broadcasting station or network is prohibited from censoring the script of the broadcast.
895.055
895.055
Gaming contracts void. 895.055(1)
(1) All promises, agreements, notes, bills, bonds, or other contracts, mortgages, conveyances or other securities, where the whole or any part of the consideration of the promise, agreement, note, bill, bond, mortgage, conveyance or other security shall be for money or other valuable thing whatsoever won or lost, laid or staked, or betted at or upon any game of any kind or under any name whatsoever, or by any means, or upon any race, fight, sport or pastime, or any wager, or for the repayment of money or other thing of value, lent or advanced at the time and for the purpose, of any game, play, bet or wager, or of being laid, staked, betted or wagered thereon shall be void.
895.055(2)
(2) This section does not apply to contracts of insurance made in good faith for the security or indemnity of the party insured.
895.055(3)
(3) This section does not apply to any promise, agreement, note, bill, bond, mortgage, conveyance or other security that is permitted under
chs. 562 to
569 or under state or federal laws relating to the conduct of gaming on Indian lands.
895.055 Annotation
A Puerto Rican judgment based on a gambling debt was entitled to full faith and credit in Wisconsin. Conquistador Hotel Corp. v. Fortino,
99 Wis. 2d 16,
298 N.W.2d 236 (Ct. App. 1980).
895.056
895.056
Recovery of money wagered. 895.056(1)(a)
(a) "Property" means any money, property or thing in action.
895.056(1)(b)
(b) "Wagerer" means any person who, by playing at any game or by betting or wagering on any game, election, horse or other race, ball playing, cock fighting, fight, sport or pastime or on the issue or event thereof, or on any future contingent or unknown occurrence or result in respect to anything whatever, shall have put up, staked or deposited any property with any stakeholder or 3rd person, or shall have lost and delivered any property to any winner thereof.
895.056(2)(a)(a) A wagerer may, within 3 months after putting up, staking or depositing property with a stakeholder or 3rd person, sue for and recover the property from the stakeholder or 3rd person whether the property has been lost or won or whether it has been delivered over by the stakeholder or 3rd person to the winner.
895.056(2)(b)
(b) A wagerer may, within 6 months after any delivery by the wagerer or the stakeholder of the property put up, staked or deposited, sue for and recover the property from the winner thereof if the property has been delivered over to the winner.
895.056(3)
(3) If the wagerer does not sue for and recover the property, which was put up, staked or deposited, within the time specified under
sub. (1), any other person may, in the person's behalf and the person's name, sue for and recover the property for the use and benefit of the wagerer's family or heirs, in case of the wagerer's death. The suit may be brought against and property recovered from any of the following:
895.056(3)(a)
(a) The stakeholder or a 3rd person if the property is still held by the stakeholder or 3rd person, within 6 months after the putting up, staking or depositing of the property.
895.056(3)(b)
(b) The winner of the property, within one year from the delivery of the property to the winner.
895.056(4)
(4) This section does not apply to any property that is permitted to be played, bet or wagered under
chs. 562 to
569 or under state or federal laws relating to the conduct of gaming on Indian lands.
895.057
895.057
Action against judicial officer for loss caused by misconduct. Any judicial officer who causes to be brought in a court over which the judicial officer presides any action or proceeding upon a claim placed in the judicial officer's hands as agent or attorney for collection shall be liable in a civil action to the person against whom such action or proceeding was brought for the full amount of damages and costs recovered on such claim.
895.057 History
History: 1993 a. 486.
895.06
895.06
Recovery of divisible personalty. When personal property is divisible and owned by tenants in common and one tenant in common shall claim and hold possession of more than the tenant's share or proportion thereof his or her cotenant, after making a demand in writing, may sue for and recover the cotenant's share or the value thereof. The court may direct the jury, if necessary, in any such action to find what specific articles or what share or interest belongs to the respective parties, and the court shall enter up judgment in form for one or both of the parties against the other, according to the verdict.
895.06 History
History: 1993 a. 486.
895.10
895.10
Tobacco product agreement. 895.10(1)(a)
(a) "Adjusted for inflation" means increased in accordance with the formula for inflation adjustment set forth in exhibit C of the master settlement agreement.
895.10(1)(b)
(b) "Affiliate" means a person who directly or indirectly owns or controls, is owned or controlled by or is under common ownership or control with, another person. Solely for the purposes of this definition, "owns", "is owned" and "ownership" mean ownership of an equity interest, or the equivalent thereof, of 10% or more, and the term "person" means an individual, partnership, committee, association, corporation or any other organization or group of persons.
895.10(1)(c)
(c) "Allocable share" means allocable share as that term is defined in the master settlement agreement.
895.10(1)(d)1.1. "Cigarette" means any product that contains nicotine, is intended to be burned or heated under ordinary conditions of use, and consists of or contains any of the following:
895.10(1)(d)1.a.
a. Any roll of tobacco wrapped in paper or in any substance not containing tobacco.
895.10(1)(d)1.b.
b. Tobacco, in any form, that is functional in the product, which, because of its appearance, the type of tobacco used in the filler, or its packaging and labeling, is likely to be offered to, or purchased by, consumers as a cigarette.
895.10(1)(d)1.c.
c. Any roll of tobacco wrapped in any substance containing tobacco which, because of its appearance, the type of tobacco used in the filler, or its packaging and labeling, is likely to be offered to, or purchased by, consumers as a cigarette described in
subd. 1. a.
895.10(1)(d)2.
2. The term "cigarette" includes "roll-your-own" tobacco, which is tobacco that, because of its appearance, type, packaging or labeling, is suitable for use and likely to be offered to, or purchased by, consumers as tobacco for making cigarettes.
895.10(1)(d)3.
3. For purposes of this definition of "cigarette", 0.09 ounces of "roll-your-own" tobacco constitutes one individual "cigarette".
895.10(1)(e)
(e) "Master settlement agreement" means the settlement agreement and related documents entered into on November 23, 1998, by this state and the leading U.S. tobacco product manufacturers.
895.10(1)(f)
(f) "Qualified escrow fund" means an escrow arrangement with a federally or state chartered financial institution having no affiliation with any tobacco product manufacturer and having assets of at least $1,000,000,000, which arrangement requires that the financial institution hold the escrowed funds' principal for the benefit of releasing parties and prohibits the tobacco product manufacturer placing the funds into escrow from using, accessing or directing the use of the funds' principal except as is consistent with
sub. (2) (b) 2.
895.10(1)(g)
(g) "Released claims" means released claims as that term is defined in the master settlement agreement.
895.10(1)(h)
(h) "Releasing parties" means releasing parties as that term is defined in the master settlement agreement.
895.10(1)(i)1.1. "Tobacco product manufacturer" means an entity that after May 23, 2000, directly, and not exclusively through any affiliate:
895.10(1)(i)1.a.
a. Manufactures cigarettes anywhere, which the manufacturer intends to be sold in the United States, including cigarettes intended to be sold in the United States through an importer; except that an entity that manufactures cigarettes that it intends to be sold in the United States shall not be considered a tobacco product manufacturer under this paragraph if those cigarettes are sold in the United States exclusively through an importer that is an original participating manufacturer, as defined in the master settlement agreement, that will be responsible for the payments under the master settlement agreement with respect to those cigarettes as a result of the provisions of subsection II (mm) of the master settlement agreement and that pays the taxes specified in subsection II (z) of the master settlement agreement, and the manufacturer of those cigarettes does not market or advertise those cigarettes in the United States;
895.10(1)(i)1.b.
b. Is the first purchaser anywhere, for resale in the United States, of cigarettes manufactured anywhere that the manufacturer does not intend to be sold in the United States; or
895.10(1)(i)2.
2. "Tobacco product manufacturer" does not include an affiliate of a tobacco product manufacturer unless the affiliate itself falls within
subd. 1. a.,
b. or
c.
895.10(1)(j)
(j) "Units sold" means the number of individual cigarettes sold in this state by the applicable tobacco product manufacturer, whether directly or through a distributor, retailer or similar intermediary, during the year in question, as measured by the excise taxes collected by this state on containers of "roll-your-own" tobacco and on packs of cigarettes bearing the excise tax stamp of this state.
895.10(2)
(2) Requirements. Any tobacco product manufacturer selling cigarettes to consumers within this state, whether directly or through a distributor, retailer or similar intermediary, after May 23, 2000, shall do one of the following:
895.10(2)(a)
(a) Become a participating manufacturer, as that term is defined in section II (jj) of the master settlement agreement, and generally perform its financial obligations under the master settlement agreement; or
895.10(2)(b)1.1. Place into a qualified escrow fund by April 15 of the year following the year in question the following amounts, as those amounts are adjusted for inflation:
895.10(2)(b)2.
2. A tobacco product manufacturer that places money into escrow under
subd. 1. shall receive the interest or other appreciation on that money as earned. The money placed into escrow shall be released from escrow only under the following circumstances:
895.10(2)(b)2.a.
a. To pay a judgment or settlement on any released claim brought against that tobacco product manufacturer by this state or any releasing party located or residing in this state. Moneys shall be released from escrow under this paragraph in the order in which they were placed into escrow and only to the extent and at the time necessary to make payments required under the judgment or settlement.
895.10(2)(b)2.b.
b. To the extent that a tobacco product manufacturer establishes that the amount it was required to place into escrow on account of the units sold in a particular year was greater than the master settlement agreement payments, as determined under section IX (i) of that agreement including after the final determination of all adjustments, that the manufacturer would have been required to make on account of such units sold had it been a participating manufacturer, the excess shall be released from escrow and revert to that tobacco product manufacturer.
895.10(2)(b)2.c.
c. To the extent not released from escrow under
subd. 2. a. or
b., money shall be released from escrow and revert to the tobacco product manufacturer twenty-five years after the date on which the money was placed into escrow.
895.10(2)(b)3.
3. Each tobacco product manufacturer that elects to place money into escrow under
subd. 1. shall annually certify to the attorney general by each April 15 that the tobacco product manufacturer is in compliance with
subds. 1. and
2. The attorney general may bring a civil action on behalf of the state against any tobacco product manufacturer that fails to place into escrow the moneys required under this subsection. Any tobacco product manufacturer that fails in any year to place into escrow the money required under
subd. 1. shall:
895.10(2)(b)3.a.
a. Be required within 15 days to place money into escrow as shall bring the tobacco product manufacturer into compliance with this subsection. The court, upon a finding of violation of this paragraph, may impose a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed 5% of the amount improperly withheld from escrow per day of the violation and in a total amount not to exceed 100% of the original amount improperly withheld from escrow.
895.10(2)(b)3.b.
b. In the case of a knowing violation, be required within 15 days to place such funds into escrow as shall bring it into compliance with this subsection. The court, upon a finding of a knowing violation of this paragraph, may impose a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed 15% of the amount improperly withheld from escrow per day of the violation and in a total amount not to exceed 300% of the original amount improperly withheld from escrow.
895.10(2)(b)3.c.
c. In the case of a second or subsequent knowing violation, be prohibited from selling cigarettes to consumers within this state directly or through a distributor, retailer or similar intermediary for a period not to exceed 2 years.
895.10(2)(b)4.
4. Each failure to make an annual deposit required under this subsection shall constitute a separate violation.
895.10(3)
(3) Awards of costs and attorney fees. If the attorney general is the prevailing party in an action under this section, the court shall award the attorney general costs and, notwithstanding
s. 814.04 (1), reasonable attorney fees.
895.10(4)
(4) Promulgation of rules. The department of revenue shall promulgate the rules necessary to ascertain the amount of Wisconsin excise tax paid on the cigarettes of each tobacco product manufacturer that elects to place funds into escrow under this section for each year.
895.10 History
History: 1999 a. 122;
2003 a. 73.
895.11
895.11
Payments under the tobacco settlement agreement. 895.11(1)(1) In this section, "tobacco settlement agreement" means the Attorneys General Master Tobacco Settlement Agreement of November 23, 1998.
895.11(2)
(2) The state's participation in the tobacco settlement agreement is affirmed.
895.11(3)
(3) All payments received and to be received by the state under the tobacco settlement agreement are the property of the state, to be used as provided by law, including a sale, assignment, or transfer of the right to receive the payments under
s. 16.63. No political subdivision of the state, and no officer or agent of any political subdivision of the state, shall have or seek to maintain any claim related to the tobacco settlement agreement or any claim against any party that was released from liability by the state under the tobacco settlement agreement.
895.11 History
History: 2001 a. 16.
895.12
895.12
Certification under the tobacco settlement agreement. 895.12(1)(a)
(a) "Brand family" means all styles of cigarettes sold under the same trademark and differentiated from one another by means of additional modifiers or descriptors, including "menthol," "lights," "kings," and "100s," and includes any brand name, alone or in conjunction with any other word; trademark; logo; symbol; motto; selling message; recognizable pattern of colors; or other indicia of product identification identical or similar to, or identifiable with, a previously known brand of cigarettes.
895.12(1)(c)
(c) "Department" means the department of revenue.
895.12(1)(d)
(d) "Distributor" means a person that is authorized to affix tax stamps to packages or other containers of cigarettes under
subch. II of ch. 139 or any person that is required to pay the tax imposed on tobacco products under
subch. III of ch. 139.
895.12(1)(f)
(f) "Nonparticipating manufacturer" means any tobacco product manufacturer that is not a participating manufacturer.
895.12(1)(g)
(g) "Participating manufacturer" has the meaning given in section II (jj) of the master settlement agreement.
