767.264.Dismissal; vacation; substitution or withdrawal of attorney.

Subch. III: General Procedure · Last amended 2005 · Current through 2025 Wisconsin Act 247 · Last verified September 8, 2026

In one sentenceSection 767.264 stops a family action being dismissed without notice to everyone who appeared, and protects an attorney's fees and the state's arrears when a case is dismissed or a judgment vacated.

Full Text of Section 767.264

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(1) OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND. An action affecting the family may not be dismissed under s. 805.04 (1) unless all the parties who have appeared in the action have been served with a copy of the notice of dismissal and have had an opportunity to file a responsive pleading or motion.

(2) ATTORNEY FEES AND OTHER AMOUNTS OWING.

(a) Upon making an order for dismissal of, for substitution of attorney in, for withdrawal of attorney from, or for vacation of a judgment granted in an action affecting the family, the court shall, prior to or in its order, grant separate judgment in favor of an attorney who has appeared for a party to the action and in favor of a guardian ad litem for a party or a child for the amount of fees and disbursements to which the attorney or guardian ad litem is, in the court’s judgment, entitled and against the party responsible for the fees and disbursements.

(b) Upon making an order for dismissal of an action affecting the family or for vacation of a judgment granted in the order, the court shall, prior to or in its order of dismissal or vacation, preserve the right of the state or a political subdivision of the state to collect any arrearages, by an action under this chapter or under ch. 785, owed to the state if either party in the case was a recipient of aid under ch. 49.

End

Official Notes

Wisconsin prints certain labelled notes with the statute — effective-date notes, cross-references, and notes of the Judicial Council. They are reproduced verbatim below. The unlabelled digest of court decisions that the Legislative Reference Bureau prints after them is annotation rather than statute, and is not reproduced.

NOTE: 2005 Wis. Act 443 contains explanatory notes.

Amendment History

Wisconsin prints each section’s legislative history as a single “History” line naming every act that created or amended it, and every renumbering. It is reproduced verbatim below.

History: 2005 a. 443 ss. 33, 92, 114.

Plain-English Summary

A voluntary dismissal cannot be used to end a family action quietly. It may not happen unless all the parties who have appeared have been served with a copy of the notice of dismissal and have had an opportunity to file a responsive pleading or motion.

Two interests are protected when the court dismisses, substitutes or allows withdrawal of an attorney, or vacates a judgment. First, the court must grant separate judgment in favour of an attorney who has appeared, for the amounts owing to them — before or in the order itself, not afterwards. Second, on a dismissal or vacation the court must preserve the right of the state or a political subdivision to collect any arrears.

Both are about the same thing: a case that stops does not erase what was already earned or already owed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my spouse dismiss the divorce without telling me?

No. An action affecting the family may not be dismissed unless all parties who have appeared have been served with a copy of the notice of dismissal and have had an opportunity to file a responsive pleading or motion.

What happens to my lawyer's unpaid fees if the case is dismissed?

The court must, before or in its order, grant separate judgment in favour of an attorney who has appeared for the amounts owing.

Does dismissal wipe out support arrears?

No. On a dismissal or a vacation of judgment the court must preserve the right of the state or a political subdivision to collect any arrearages.

Source & verification. The statutory text, official notes and history are reproduced verbatim from the Wisconsin Statutes, Chapter 767 (Wis. Stat. § 767.264), published by the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. Current through 2025 Wisconsin Act 247. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified September 8, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: dismiss divorce Wisconsin noticeattorney fees on dismissalpreserve arrears dismissalwithdrawal of attorney family case