Wis. Stat. » CHAPTER 904 — EVIDENCE — RELEVANCY AND ITS LIMITS
Wisconsin Statutes

Wis. Stat. § 904.02 (2026)

Relevant evidence generally admissible; irrelevant evidence inadmissible

✓ current as of July 2026
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904.02904.02 Relevant evidence generally admissible; irrelevant evidence inadmissible. All relevant evidence is admissible, except as otherwise provided by the constitutions of the United States and the state of Wisconsin, by statute, by these rules, or by other rules adopted by the supreme court. Evidence which is not relevant is not admissible.
904.02 HistoryHistory: Sup. Ct. Order, 59 Wis. 2d R1, R70 (1973).
904.02 AnnotationA defendant does not have a constitutional right to present irrelevant evidence. State v. Robinson, 146 Wis. 2d 315, 431 N.W.2d 165 (1988).
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 132 cases (40 in the last 5 years), 1976–2026 · leading case: Carney-Hayes Ex Rel. McCormack v. Nw. Wisconsin Home Care, Inc., 2005 WI 118 (Wis. 2005).
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Carney-Hayes Ex Rel. McCormack v. Nw. Wisconsin Home Care, Inc., 2005 WI 118 (Wis. 2005). · cites it 16× “The court may also employ evidentiary rules including Wis. Stat. §§ 904.02 (relevant evidence; irrelevant evidence), 904.”
State v. Robert Joseph Stietz, 2017 WI 58 (Wis. 2017). · cites it 4× “" Wis. Stat. § 904.02 . A defendant has a fundamental right to testify and give, in his own words, his version of what happened.”
State v. Lindh, 468 N.W.2d 168 (Wis. 1991). · cites it 8× “Section 904.02, Stats. [8] Even if admissible, evidence may be excluded if its probative value is substantially outweighed by other factors, including risk of unfair prejudice.”
Leitinger v. DBart, Inc., 2007 WI 84 (Wis. 2007). · cites it 4× “Wis. Stat. § 904.02 . The collateral source rule is a court-made rule.”
State v. Patricia A. M., 500 N.W.2d 289 (Wis. 1993). · cites it 7× “Section 904.02. Section 904.01 defines relevant evidence as "evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.”
In Interest of Michael RB, 499 N.W.2d 641 (Wis. 1993). · cites it 6× “Section 904.02, Stats., provides: All relevant evidence is admissible, except as otherwise provided by the constitutions of the United States and the state of Wisconsin, by statute, by these rules, or by other rules adopted by the supreme court.”
State v. Shomberg, 2006 WI 9 (Wis. 2006). · cites it 4× “Wis. Stat. § 904.02 . A trial court may preclude certain relevant evidence, "if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury, or by considerations of undue delay, waste of time, or needless…”
Sumnicht v. Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., 360 N.W.2d 2 (Wis. 1984). · cites it 4× “" Section 904.02, Stats., provides as follows: "Relevant evidence generally admissible; irrelevant evidence inadmissible.”
Weborg v. Jenny, 2012 WI 67 (Wis. 2012). · cites it 3× “" Wis. Stat. § 904.02 . At the same time, "Evidence which is not relevant is not admissible," § 904.”
State v. Alsteen, 324 N.W.2d 426 (Wis. 1982). · cites it 4× “Under sec. 904.02, Stats., however, "[e]vidence which is not relevant is not admissible.”
State v. Richardson, 563 N.W.2d 899 (Wis. 1997). · cites it 10× “1984), should be adopted for determining the admissibility of frame-up defense evidence, (2) whether Richardson's frame-up evidence was relevant pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 904.02 (1995-96) 1 and Wis. Stat.”
State v. Eddie Lee Anthony, 2015 WI 20 (Wis. 2015). · cites it 4× “There's nothing a court could do to enforce those rules.”
Show all 132 citing cases →
— Wis. Stat. § 904.02(2) — 3 cases
State v. Wenger, 593 N.W.2d 467 (Wis. Ct. App. 1999).
State v. Patricia A. M., 500 N.W.2d 289 (Wis. 1993). “Section 904.02. Section 904.01 defines relevant evidence as "evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.”
Peasley v. State, 265 N.W.2d 506 (Wis. 1978).
— Wis. Stat. § 904.02(2)(a) — 2 cases
State v. Eric L. Vanremortel (Wis. Ct. App. 2019).
Joseph Koutnik v. Martindale Pinnacle Constr., LLC (Wis. Ct. App. 2022).
— Wis. Stat. § 904.02(2)(b) — 1 case
State v. Samuel L. Nichols, Jr. (Wis. Ct. App. 2020).
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