Methodology &
Process.
Transparent, replicable, and grounded in constitutional fidelity—not partisan loyalty.
Seven people most Wisconsinites cannot name.
Your property rights, your children's schools, the integrity of your elections, and the limits on government power all depend on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. These justices decide cases that reshape the legal landscape more consequentially than most legislation—yet unlike legislators, they face almost no structured public accountability between elections.
5-Metric Methodology
Weighted across every opinion authored or joined.
Critical Cases Alignment
Performance in the term's ten highest-stakes decisions.
Five pillars of judicial excellence.
Click any card to read the full scoring criteria.
Adherence to Precedent
Consistent respect for established legal precedent and principled, predictable application of existing case law.
Separation of Powers & Constitutional Boundaries
Respect for constitutional limits on government power and the proper allocation of authority among the branches.
Textualism & Originalism
Interpretation grounded in the actual text of the law and the original public meaning of constitutional provisions.
Respect for the Judicial Role
Narrow resolutions tied to the dispute presented, avoiding sweeping new rules and acting like a judge — not a legislator.
Protection of Individual Liberty
Rigorous enforcement of enumerated constitutional protections against government overreach.
From opinion to scorecard.
Read & Classify
Every published opinion from the term is read in full and classified by category and authorship.
Score by Rubric
Each opinion is scored across the five metrics using a transparent, replicable rubric.
Weight & Aggregate
Scores are weighted by metric and combined with critical-case alignment for a composite score.
Publish & Verify
Methodology and underlying data are published openly so any score can be independently verified.