Randy R. Koschnick, State Supreme Court Candidate, 2009

Below is an essay submitted by Randy Koschnick, State Supreme Court Candidate, to explain his candidacy to the Wisconsin business community. WMC is providing essays from all statewide candidates to Wisconsin business leaders leading up to the April 7 election.


The Honorable Randy R. Koschnick has distinguished himself as a leader in Wisconsin’s legal community serving as Presiding Judge of the Jefferson County Circuit Court and Deputy Chief Judge of Wisconsin’s Third Judicial District. He is an award-winning jurist with nearly 25 years of legal experience covering a broad spectrum of the law including the Circuit Court, the State Public Defenders’ Office, a county prosecutor’s office, and as Board Member of the State Bar of Wisconsin Criminal Law Section.

Judge Koschnick was elected to the Jefferson County Circuit Court in 1999 and re-elected to the bench in 2005. He is a recipient of the Wisconsin Law Journal’s 2008 Leaders in the Law Award for implementing “…a number of significant changes, designed to save the taxpayers of Jefferson County money and enhance the public safety, while improving the speed at which cases are processed in the county.” Under his leadership, the Jefferson County Circuit Court rose from 18th to 2nd statewide for overall median case age at disposition within the first twelve months of his new case assignment plan.

Active in Wisconsin’s legal community, Judge Koschnick served as Board Member of the State Bar of Wisconsin Criminal Law Section (2001-2005). In addition, he was selected to serve on the State Assembly’s Criminal Justice Reforms Task Force, which enhanced state law by implementing new, evidence-based practices in the areas of eyewitness identification and police interrogation of criminal suspects. These reforms were adopted primarily to increase the reliability of criminal convictions and, at the same time, to reduce the likelihood of wrongful convictions. Judge Koschnick’s expertise in criminal law has allowed him to lecture at legal training seminars sponsored by the Wisconsin Judicial Education Office, as well as at the Wisconsin District Attorney’s Conference and the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s Conference.

A strict constructionist of the law and an advocate for victim’s rights, Judge Koschnick helped create the Jefferson County Victim Impact Panel. He is the panel’s Coordinator and Moderator (2003-present). His work at the county level includes service as a Board Member of Jefferson County’s People Against Domestic Abuse (1996-1999) and past President of the Jefferson County Bar Association.

Prior to his nearly 10 years on the Circuit Court, Judge Koschnick served 14 years as public defender in La Crosse County and Jefferson County, where he was elevated to Deputy First Assistant State Public Defender (1985-1989). He also gained valuable prosecution experience as an intern in the Homicide and Sexual Assault Prosecution Unit of the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, where he prepared briefs for prosecuting attorneys (1983-1985).

Judge Koschnick is running for the Supreme Court because he believes his opponent’s record has been bad for business and public safety in Wisconsin. He is not alone. Following the Supreme Court’s decisions in Ferdon v. Patient Compensation Fund (Medical Malpractice Caps) and Thomas v. Mallett (Lead Paint), in which Chief Justice Abrahamson joined, the Wall Street Journal stated that “the Wisconsin Supreme Court declared the state open for business to trial lawyers looking to extort money from businesses based on dubious or frivolous personal-injury claims.” Justice Abrahamson also authored the decision in Wischer v. Mitsubishi, which facilitated recovery of punitive damage awards despite an attempt by the legislature to make such recoveries more difficult.

Chief Justice Abrahamson states she calls cases as she sees them, but Judge Koschnick is running because he believes she too often sees them in ways that are damaging to Wisconsin businesses. As with all other aspects of life in the State, he believes that Wisconsin’s business climate is best served by the stability that comes when justices apply the law as written.

Judge Koschnick is a lifelong Wisconsin resident. He was born in Milwaukee in 1960, graduated from Whitefish Bay High School, received a Bachelors of Science Degree from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (1982), and earned his Juris Doctorate from Hamline University School of Law (1985).

Judge Koschnick resides in Ixonia with his wife, Terri. They have two daughters.