801.07.Jurisdiction in rem or quasi in rem, grounds for generally.

Section 801.07 governs jurisdiction that attaches to property, a status, or a thing situated in Wisconsin, rather than to a person directly. It opens with a limit that applies across the whole section: a judgment in rem or quasi in rem can only affect a defendant’s interest in the property or status at issue if that defendant was served with a summons in the manner the notice-of-object-of-action rules require.

The section then lists the specific grounds for invoking this kind of jurisdiction. It covers actions where the subject of the case is real or personal property in Wisconsin and the defendant has or claims a lien or interest in it, or where the relief sought would exclude the defendant from that interest — a category that applies even when the defendant is unknown. It covers foreclosure, redemption, or satisfaction of a mortgage, claim, or lien on Wisconsin real estate; cases where the defendant’s property in the state has been attached or a debtor of the defendant has been garnisheed; and actions to declare property within Wisconsin a public nuisance.

The final ground addresses marital status. In a family action meeting Wisconsin’s residency requirements, a court can exercise quasi in rem jurisdiction to determine questions of status — such as whether a marriage should be dissolved — once the respondent has been properly served, without needing the personal jurisdiction grounds that other kinds of judgments would require. That carve-out reflects that a status determination affects the marriage itself, not necessarily a personal money judgment against the respondent.