Wisconsin Statutes

Wis. Stat. § 801.20 (2026)

When documents may be filed as confidential

✓ current as of July 2026

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801.20801.20 When documents may be filed as confidential.

801.20(1)(1) The director of state courts shall maintain a list of commonly-filed documents made confidential by statutes, court rules and case law, and shall make this list publicly available. Documents on the list may be submitted by a party without a motion or court order and will be automatically treated by the court as confidential.

801.20(2)(2) A filing party is responsible for properly identifying a document as confidential at the time it is filed. The court is not required to review documents to determine if the documents are confidential in nature.

801.20 HistoryHistory: Sup. Ct. Order No. 14-04, 2015 WI 89, 364 Wis. 2d xv.

801.20 NoteNOTE: Sup. Ct. Order No. 14-04 states: “Comments to Wis. Stat. ss. 801.19, 801.20, and 801.21 are not adopted, but will be published and may be consulted for guidance in interpreting and applying the statute.”

801.20 NoteComment, 2015: Confidentiality of court documents is often an area of confusion for the public, lawyers, and court-related professionals. This problem can be addressed by publishing a list of commonly-filed documents that the court will automatically treat as confidential without a motion because they are protected by statutes, court rules, or case law. The filing party must properly identify the document at the time it is filed. Court staff are not required to review documents to determine confidentiality.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 1 case (1 in the last 5 years), 2022–2022 · leading case: John Doe 1 v. Madison Metro Sch. Dist., 2022 WI 65 (Wis. 2022).

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John Doe 1 v. Madison Metro Sch. Dist., 2022 WI 65 (Wis. 2022). · cites it 2× “2020AP1032 And Wis. Stat. § 801.20 (1) requires the director of state courts to "maintain a list of commonly-filed documents made confidential by statutes, court rules and case law.”

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