767.815.Enlargement of time in a paternity proceeding.
Subch. IX: Paternity · Last amended 2005 · Current through 2025 Wisconsin Act 247 · Last verified September 8, 2026
Full Text of Section 767.815
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: 1983 a. 447; 2005 a. 443 ss. 191, 246; Stats. 2005 s. 767.815.
Plain-English Summary
Two ways to buy more time, and they differ in kind.
Good cause. On the petitioner's demonstration of good cause, the court may order one additional 60-day extension for service of the summons and petition — without notice, and only once.
Reasonable grounds and due diligence. The time may be extended until the day service actually happens, however long that takes, if two things are both true: there are reasonable grounds to believe that, before the ordinary time expired, the respondent knew the mother was pregnant and that he might be the father; and due diligence was exercised in trying to serve him.
The second route has no ceiling because it is aimed at a particular person: one who knew what was coming and made himself hard to find. The first is a routine indulgence, and is limited accordingly.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can service be extended in a Wisconsin paternity case?
One additional 60-day extension on a showing of good cause, or, where the respondent knew of the pregnancy and due diligence was exercised, until the date the summons and petition are actually served.
Do I get notice of the good cause extension?
No. The court may order that extension without notice.
What has to be shown for the open-ended extension?
Both that there are reasonable grounds to believe the respondent knew before the time expired that the mother was pregnant and that he might be the father, and that due diligence was exercised in attempting to serve him.