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Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
| Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Milwaukee, Wis. |
| Type: | 501(c)(3) |
| Top official: | Rick Esenberg, President and General Counsel |
| Website: | Official website |
The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that participates in court cases it believes will uphold the rule of law, individual liberty, constitutional government, or civil society.[1] In addition to its litigation services, WILL publishes research on education and other policy issues in the state of Wisconsin.[1]
Background
Rick Esenberg founded WILL in 2013 due to what he called a "need for having a conservative, libertarian legal organization in the state of Wisconsin."[2]
According to its website, WILL had the following mission as of August 2025:[3]
| “ | Through education, litigation, and participation in public discourse, we seek to advance the public interest in the rule of law, individual liberty, constitutional government, and a robust civil society.[4] | ” |
Leadership
The following individuals held leadership positions within WILL, as of August 2025:[5]
- Rick Esenberg, President and General Counsel
- Dan Lennington, Managing Vice President and Deputy Counsel
- Stacy A. Stueck, Director of Administration and Corporate Secretary
- Brian McGrath, Senior Counsel
- Mike Fischer, Senior Counsel
- Kyle Koenen , Director of Policy
- Will Flanders, Research Director
- Pat Garrett, Communications Director
- Eric Searing, Director of External Relations
Work and activities
Litigation
The WILL website listed open and closed cases that the organization has participated in as of August 2025. The cases are organized into five different categories:
- Individual Liberties
- Constitutional Government and Rule of Law
- Economic Freedom
- Education Reform
- Equal Protection
In September 2013, WILL helped a Milwaukee church win a tax exemption case against the city.[6]
WILL went to court against the Madison Metropolitan School District in 2014 arguing that the teachers' labor contracts were in violation of Act 10.[7] In one case, the court dismissed WILL's case on procedural grounds. In another case the court granted summary judgment in favor of the school district.[7] However, in 2015, WILL participated in a case against teacher labor contracts in Kenosha Unified School District and the judge held that those contracts violated Act 10.[8]
Between January 2021 and August 2025, WILL has represented 80 clients in 25 states in cases challenging federal, state, and local policies related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.[9]
Center for Competitive Federalism
In July 2016, WILL announced a new program to pursue litigation on the national stage with a focus on limiting the powers of the federal government. The organization launched the Center for Competitive Federalism, a project that would "focus on filing lawsuits and issuing policy statements targeting what it sees as federal overreach," according to The Associated Press.[10] According to WILL's press release, senior fellow Mario Loyola became the center's first director. The release also explained, "The CCF is based at WILL in Milwaukee and the scope of its activities will be national. It will seek the best opportunities for meaningful litigation and will direct its educational efforts at think tanks and litigation centers throughout the country."[11]
As of August 2025, the center's work was archived on WILL's website.[12]
Policy and education
Beyond WILL's litigation work, the organization publishes policy research on a range of issues, including healthcare, education and elections.[13] The education policy reports published by WILL cover topics such as the Milwaukee public school system, charter schools and voucher programs, and financing of K-12 education in Wisconsin.[13]
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this organization made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.
Finances
The following is a breakdown of WILL's revenue and expenses for 2021-2023, according to documents submitted to the Internal Revenue Service:
| Annual revenue and expenses for WILL, 2021-2023 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tax Year | Total Revenue | Total Expenses |
| 2023[14] | $3,604,933 | $3,610,660 |
| 2022[14] | $4,665,104 | $3,417,220 |
| 2021[15] | $4,311,176 | $3,119,137 |
Noteworthy events
Fabick v. Evers (2020)
On August 26, 2020, WILL filed a lawsuit against Gov. Tony Evers, alleging Evers illegally extended a state of emergency and could not implement statewide requirements for individuals to wear face coverings when in public in response to the coronavirus pandemic.[16] Britt Cudaback, a spokeswoman for Evers, characterized the lawsuit as an effort to "prevent the governor from keeping Wisconsinites healthy and safe." Rick Esenberg, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said, "[This] lawsuit is about our system of government and the rule of law." [17][18] The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-3 on March 31, 2021 in a separate case that Evers' emergency order was unconstitutional.[19]
Koschkee v. Evers (2017)
On November 20, 2017, WILL filed a lawsuit against Tony Evers, then the Wisconsin superintendent of public instruction, alleging that Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) were in violation of the Wisconsin REINS Act, which requires state legislative authorization of administrative rules that carry compliance and implementation costs of $10 million or more over a two-year period. WILL's suit was filed on behalf of two school board members and two public school teachers from Wisconsin school districts.[20][21][22]
A press release from WILL alleged that "Evers and the DPI are violating this provision of the law by refusing to send scope statements to the Department of Administration."[23]
Tom McCarthy, a spokesman for DPI, said in a statement issued the same day as the lawsuit filing that the legal issues raised by WILL were already decided by the Wisconsin Supreme Court in the 2016 case Coyne v. Walker.[21] McCarthy argued that the state REINS Act does not apply to DPI.
In a 4-2 decision, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled the DPI and Superintendent of Public Instruction must receive written approval from the governor before drafting or implementing new administrative rules.[24][25] The court held that the Wisconsin Constitution allows the state REINS Act to apply to the DPI because the power to make rules is legislative and controlled by the legislature.[25]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty , "What We Do," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ The Capital Times , "Q&A: Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty takes on 'cause lawyering' from the right," May 19, 2013
- ↑ WILL, "Guiding Principles," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty , "Our Team," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Small church wins big tax exemption case against Milwaukee," September 17, 2013
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty "Blaska v. Madison Metropolitan School District," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ Washington Free Beacon, "Judge Strikes Down Coercive Dues in Wisconsin School District," March 27, 2015
- ↑ Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty , "Equality," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ Wisconsin State Journal, "Conservative Wisconsin group expanding focus nationally," July 11, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, "WILL launches new project on federalism," July 11, 2016
- ↑ Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty , "Center for Competitive Federalism," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty , "Policy," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Internal Revenue Service, "WILL IRS Form 990 (2023)," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ Internal Revenue Service, "WILL IRS Form 990 (2022)," accessed August 4, 2025
- ↑ Wisconsin Examiner , "Lawsuit challenges Evers' latest health emergency," August 26, 2020
- ↑ Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty , "WILL Sues Governor Evers Over Second COVID-19 Emergency Declaration," August 25, 2020
- ↑ Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel , "Conservatives sue to knock down Tony Evers' health emergency, mask mandate," August 25, 2020
- ↑ Wisconsin Public Radio , "Wisconsin Supreme Court Strikes Down Statewide Mask Mandate," March 31, 2021
- ↑ Watchdog.org, "Conservative group sues Department of Public Instruction for violating the REINS Act," November 20, 2017
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Wisconsin Public Radio, "WILL Challenges DPI's Rule-Making Authority," November 20, 2017
- ↑ CBS 58, "Lawsuit filed against Evers over handling of education policies," November 20, 2017
- ↑ Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, "WILL Press Release: WILL Sues State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers," November 20, 2017
- ↑ Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Wisconsin Supreme Court: State superintendent must seek approval before setting education policy," Molly Beck, June 25, 2019
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Supreme Court of Wisconsin, "Kristi Koschkee et al. v. Carolyn Stanford Taylor," June 25, 2019
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