Wisconsin Statutes
Wis. Stat. § 903.01 (2026)
Presumptions in general
✓ current as of July 2026
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903.01903.01 Presumptions in general. Except as provided by statute, a presumption recognized at common law or created by statute, including statutory provisions that certain basic facts are prima facie evidence of other facts, imposes on the party relying on the presumption the burden of proving the basic facts, but once the basic facts are found to exist the presumption imposes on the party against whom it is directed the burden of proving that the nonexistence of the presumed fact is more probable than its existence.
903.01 AnnotationThis section does not apply to the presumption in favor of traveling employees under s. 102.03 (1) (f). Goranson v. DILHR, 94 Wis. 2d 537, 289 N.W.2d 270 (1980).
903.01 AnnotationConflicting presumptions should rarely present a problem. Under this section it is impossible for opposing parties to both have the burden of persuasion on the same issue. Should inconsistent presumptions be established in a case, the weight of the evidence establishing the facts upon which the presumptions are premised is for the trier of fact and not the judge with respect to the law. Marine Bank v. Taz’s Trucking Incorporated, 2005 WI 65, 281 Wis. 2d 275, 697 N.W.2d 90, 03-2827.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 31
cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1976–2024 · leading case: Odd S.-G. v. Carolyn S.-G., 533 N.W.2d 794 (Wis. 1995).
Odd S.-G. v. Carolyn S.-G., 533 N.W.2d 794 (Wis. 1995). “Except as provided by statute, a presumption recognized at common law or created by statute, including statutory provisions that certain basic facts are prima facie evidence of other facts, imposes on the party relying on the presumption the burden of proving the basic *374…”
Currie v. State Dep't of Indus., Labor & Human Relations, 565 N.W.2d 253 (Wis. Ct. App. 1997). “The agency has been charged by the legislature with the duty of administering Wisconsin's Fair Employment Act, and has at least once before considered the precise issue of whether a prima facie case of discrimination in a WFEA action raises a burden-of-persuasion-shifting…”
Beecher v. Labor & Indus. Review Comm'n, 2004 WI 88 (Wis. 2004). “In Wisconsin, presumptions in civil cases are governed by Wis. Stat. § 903.01 , which states: [A] presumption recognized at common law or created by statute, including statutory provisions that certain basic facts are prima facie evidence of other facts, imposes on the party…”
Bonstores Realty One, LLC v. City of Wauwatosa, 2013 WI App 131 (Wis. Ct. App. 2013). “Once the presumed fact (the assessed value) is established, Wis. Stat. § 903.01 shifts the burden of producing evidence to the opponent of the presumed *447 fact—here to Bonstores—to produce evidence that it is more probable than not that the assessed value is not correct.”
Goranson v. Dep't of Indus., Labor & Human Relations, 289 N.W.2d 270 (Wis. 1980). “Should sec. 903.01, Stats. 1977, be applied when presumptions arise in worker’s compensation hearings before the Department? We conclude that sec.”
Vincent Milewski v. Town of Dover, 2017 WI 79 (Wis. 2017). “To avoid this situation, the legislature has restricted the property owner's ability to contest the amount of the assessment if the property owner refuses the assessor an actual view.”
Marine Bank v. Taz's Trucking Inc., 2005 WI 65 (Wis. 2005). “In Wisconsin, presumptions in civil cases are considered in accord with Wis. Stat. § 903.01 , which states in relevant part: [ A] presumption recognized at common law or created by statute, including statutory provisions that certain basic facts are prima facie evidence of other…”
Russ Ex Rel. Schwartz v. Russ, 2007 WI 83 (Wis. 2007). “No financial institution is liable to the spouse of a married person who is a party to a joint account for any sum withdrawn by any party to the account unless the financial institution violates a court order.”
Ottman v. Town of Primrose, 2011 WI 18 (Wis. 2011). “In evidentiary disputes, a presumption is a rule of law by which a *29 finding of a basic fact gives rise to an existence of a presumed fact, and the party against whom the presumption is directed bears the burden of proving that the nonexistence of the presumed fact is more…”
Abbas v. Palmersheim, 2004 WI App 126 (Wis. Ct. App. 2004). “§ 903.01 (providing that a "presumption imposes on the party against whom it is directed the burden of proving that the nonexistence of the presumed fact is more probable than its existence").”
DiBenedetto v. Jaskolski, 2003 WI App 70 (Wis. Ct. App. 2003). “Thus, under Wis. Stat. § 903.01 , the burden shifted to the personal representative to demonstrate *742 that "the nonexistence of the presumed fact" — that FBT was the marital child of FJT — was "more probable than its existence.”
S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc. v. Wisconsin Dep't of Revenue, 552 N.W.2d 102 (Wis. Ct. App. 1996). “" However, citing § 903.01, STATS., [3] the Commission stated that the SIC Manual merely created a presumption that Armstrong Park is manufacturing property, which the Department *721 had successfully rebutted "by showing that Armstrong Park fails to meet any of the…”
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