Paper Service

Papers for service are accepted at the Sheriff's Business Office during regular business hours; Monday – Friday, 8:00a – 4:00p.  You may also fax papers to 608-785-5640 or email them to [email protected]

Fees shall be paid at the time the papers are accepted for service. We charge a $100.00 flat fee for each case to be served, please be aware that additional fees may apply for deputy time.  Sheriff Sales are $150.00 to include the posting and the sale.  Municipal agencies within Wisconsin shall be billed at the time of service.

Payments can be made online by clicking here.

The Sheriff's Office shall charge for the service of Civil Process, legal notices, and other actions with certain exceptions:

• An indigent person is an exception. The indigent person must have a Waiver of Fees from the court of jurisdiction.
• Temporary restraining orders (TRO's) and injunctions may be exempt from fees, depending upon the basis of the court order.

The County Board pursuant to Wisconsin Statute 814.70 and a County resolution establishes fees.

A deputy time fee of $49.32 - $58.22 per hour may be added for time spent in property seizures and evictions stand-bys.

Types of Papers Served:

• Citation
• Property Attachment
• Notice of Sale of Personal Property
• Summons and Complaint - Divorce Petition
• Execution Against Property
• Notice of Mortgage Foreclosure
• Garnishment Summons and Complaint
• Garnishment of Earnings
• Summons and Complaint - Large Claims (over $5,000)
• Summons and Complaint - Writ of Replevin
• Summons and Complaint - Writ of Replevin as a Large Claims Action
• Writ of Replevin
• Small Claims Actions
• Subpoenas
• Summons
• Temporary Restraining Order and Injunctions
• Writ of Attachment
• Writ of Assistance
• Notice of Hearing and Commitment Rights, Order for Final Hearing or Dismissal
• Petitions/Orders

Time Requirements Eviction: Return date shall be not less than five working days nor more than thirty days from the issue date. The paper must be served not less than five working days prior to the return date.


Execution:

• Notice of Mortgage Foreclosure - Sale shall be advertised by posting at least three weeks prior to the date of sale.
• Notice of Sale of Personal Property - Notice of sale shall be posted at least twenty days before the date of sale.

Garnishment: A garnishment summons and complaint shall be served on the "garnishee defendant" in conformity with the standard procedure for a small claims action or a large claims action - whichever is applicable. Notice of such service or a copy of the garnishee summons and complaint, together with the summons in the principal action, shall be served on the "principal defendant" no later than ten business days after service on the "garnishee defendant."


Large Claims Action: The paper must be served within ninety days of filing.


Replevin:

• Replevin as a small claims action - The paper must be served eight business days before the return date. The return date for the summons served must be less than eight business days from the issue date nor more than thirty days from the issue date.
• Replevin as a large claims action - The paper must be served within ninety days of filing.

Restraining Orders: Unless otherwise specified, they can be served right up to the time of the hearing.


Small Claims Action:

• General - a small claims action must be served at least eight working days before the date the party must appear. The date of appearance shall be not less than eight working days from the issue date and no more than thirty days from the issue date.
• Small claims, eviction action - see above.
• Writ of Restitution: No writ shall be executed if received by the sheriff more than thirty days after is issuance.

Glossary of Terms

• Attachment: A writ against property, which commands the sheriff to seize property belonging to the defendant to satisfy a claim of the plaintiff.
• Competent: A person who is capable of understanding the contents of the paper served.
• Eviction: A summons to the defendant to appear and answer a complaint for unlawfully detaining certain premises
.
• Execution: A write to enforce a judgment, which requires the payment of money or the delivery of property.
• Family Member: In the service of process context, a family member is a relative who is part of the household.
• Garnishment: An action whereby a creditor attempts to satisfy his/her claim by seizing assets that belong to the debtor but are in the hands of a third party.
• Garnishee Defendant: The party in a garnishment action who is holding the assets due to the debtor.
• Haebeas Corpus: A writ directed to a person detaining anther, commanding him/her to produce the body of the prisoner at a certain time and place.
• Large Claims Action: An action on a claim for greater than $5,000.
• Personal Service: The direct serving of a copy of the paper to the person to be served.
• Posting: A process where a copy of an eviction action is affixed onto some part of the premises where it can be conveniently read.
• Principal Defendant: The debtor in a garnishment action.
• Reasonable Diligence: A pursuit of leads or information reasonably calculated to make personal service possible.
• Replevin: A process commanding the sheriff to seize property, which is in the hands of the defendant.
• Restraining Order: An order after a hearing that is intended to protect one individual from violence, abuse, harassment, stalking, etc., by another.
• Small Claims Action: An action on a claim for $5,000 or less.
• Substituted Service: The serving of a copy of the paper at the party's usual place of abode to a competent member of the family at least fourteen years of age or to a competent adult currently residing in the abode.
• Terminating Tenancy: A writ notifying the tenant to vacate the premises at a specified time.
• Usual Place of Abode: The actual premises where the party sleeps, eats and gets mail, etc.
• Writ of Restitution: An action, which commands the sheriff to remove the defendant and goods from the premises so that the owner may have peaceful possession of the same and to satisfy the judgment for costs.

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