A court of this state having jurisdiction of the subject matter and grounds for personal jurisdiction as provided in s. 801.05 may exercise personal jurisdiction over a defendant by service of a summons as follows:
801.11.Personal jurisdiction, manner of serving summons for.
Ch. 801: Commencement of Action and Venue · Last amended 2005 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceSection 801.11 lists the manner of serving a summons on each type of defendant — natural persons, minors and people under disability, the state, local governments, corporations and LLCs, and partners — to establish personal jurisdiction, moving from personal delivery to substituted service to publication as a last resort.
Full Text of Section 801.11
(1) NATURAL PERSON. Except as provided in sub. (2) upon a natural person:
(a) By personally serving the summons upon the defendant either within or without this state.
(b) If with reasonable diligence the defendant cannot be served under par. (a), then by leaving a copy of the summons at the defendant’s usual place of abode: 1. In the presence of some competent member of the family at least 14 years of age, who shall be informed of the contents thereof; 1m. In the presence of a competent adult, currently residing in the abode of the defendant, who shall be informed of the contents of the summons; or 2. Pursuant to the law for the substituted service of summons or like process upon defendants in actions brought in courts of general jurisdiction of the state in which service is made.
(c) If with reasonable diligence the defendant cannot be served under par. (a) or (b), service may be made by publication of the summons as a class 3 notice, under ch. 985, and by mailing. If the defendant’s post-office address is known or can with reasonable diligence be ascertained, there shall be mailed to the defendant, at or immediately prior to the first publication, a copy of the summons and a copy of the complaint. The mailing may be omitted if the post-office address cannot be ascertained with reasonable diligence.
(d) In any case, by serving the summons in a manner specified by any other statute upon the defendant or upon an agent authorized by appointment or by law to accept service of the summons for the defendant.
(2) NATURAL PERSON UNDER DISABILITY. Upon a natural person under disability by serving the summons in any manner prescribed in sub. (1) upon the person under disability and, in addition, where required by par. (a) or (b), upon a person therein designated. A minor 14 years of age or older who is not adjudicated incompetent and not otherwise under guardianship is not a person under disability for purposes of this subsection.
(a) Where the person under disability is a minor under the age of 14 years, summons shall be served separately in any manner prescribed in sub. (1) upon a parent or guardian having custody of the child, or if there is none, upon any other person having the care and control of the child. If there is no parent, guardian or other person having care and control of the child when service is made upon the child, then service of the summons shall also be made upon the guardian ad litem after appointment under s. 803.01.
(b) Where the person under disability is known by the plaintiff to be under guardianship of any kind, a summons shall be served separately upon the guardian in any manner prescribed in sub. (1), (5) or (6). If no guardian has been appointed when service is made upon a person alleged by the plaintiff to be incompetent to have charge of the person’s affairs, then service of the summons shall be made upon the guardian ad litem after appointment under s. 803.01.
(3) STATE. Upon the state, by delivering a copy of the summons and of the complaint to the attorney general or leaving them at the attorney general’s office in the capitol with an assistant or clerk.
(4) OTHER POLITICAL CORPORATIONS OR BODIES POLITIC. (a) Upon a political corporation or other body politic, by personally serving any of the specified officers, directors, or agents:
1. If the action is against a county, the chairperson of the county board or the county clerk; 2. If against a town, the chairperson or clerk thereof; 3. If against a city, the mayor, city manager or clerk thereof; 4. If against a village, the president or clerk thereof; 5. If against a technical college district, the district board chairperson or secretary thereof; 6. If against a school district or school board, the president or clerk thereof; and 7. If against any other body politic, an officer, director, or managing agent thereof. (b) In lieu of delivering the copy of the summons to the person specified, the copy may be left in the office of such officer, director or managing agent with the person who is apparently in charge of the office.
(5) DOMESTIC OR FOREIGN CORPORATIONS OR LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANIES, GENERALLY. Upon a domestic or foreign corporation or domestic or foreign limited liability company:
(a) By personally serving the summons upon an officer, director or managing agent of the corporation or limited liability company either within or without this state. In lieu of delivering the copy of the summons to the officer specified, the copy may be left in the office of such officer, director or managing agent with the person who is apparently in charge of the office.
(b) If with reasonable diligence the defendant cannot be served under par. (a), then the summons may be served upon an officer, director or managing agent of the corporation or limited liability company by publication and mailing as provided in sub. (1).
(c) By serving the summons in a manner specified by any other statute upon the defendant or upon an agent authorized by appointment or by law to accept service of the summons for the defendant.
(d) If against any insurer, to any agent of the insurer as defined by s. 628.02. Service upon an agent of the insurer is not valid unless a copy of the summons and proof of service is sent by registered mail to the principal place of business of the insurer within 5 days after service upon the agent. Service upon any insurer may also be made under par. (a).
(6) PARTNERS AND PARTNERSHIPS. A summons shall be served individually upon each general partner known to the plaintiff by service in any manner prescribed in sub. (1), (2) or (5) where the claim sued upon arises out of or relates to partnership activities within this state sufficient to subject a defendant to personal jurisdiction under s. 801.05 (2) to (10). A judgment rendered under such circumstances is a binding adjudication individually against each partner so served and is a binding adjudication against the partnership as to its assets anywhere.
Official Notes
Cross-reference: As to service on corporation, see also s. 180.0504.
Judicial Council Note, 1986: Sub. (1) (b) is amended to permit substituted service upon residents of other states. Service upon nonresidents may be made either as provided for Wisconsin residents or in accordance with the substituted service rule of the state wherein service is made. [Re Order eff. 7-1-86]
Plain-English Summary
Section 801.11 is the how-to-serve companion to the jurisdictional grounds in section 801.05. For a natural person, personal service anywhere, in or out of Wisconsin, comes first. If that can’t be accomplished with reasonable diligence, the summons can be left at the defendant’s usual place of abode with a family member at least 14 years old or another competent adult living there, or through the substituted-service procedure of the state where service happens. Only if personal and substituted service both fail does the section allow service by publication, paired with mailing a copy to any known or reasonably discoverable address. A person under a legal disability gets the same layered treatment, but with an added requirement to also serve a parent or guardian (for a minor under 14) or a guardian (for someone under guardianship), turning to a guardian ad litem if none of those exists.
The section then works through entity defendants. The state is served through the attorney general’s office. Counties, towns, cities, villages, technical college districts, school districts, and other bodies politic are each served through a specified officer — for example, a county’s chairperson or clerk, or a city’s mayor, manager, or clerk — or by leaving the summons with whoever is apparently in charge of that officer’s office. Domestic and foreign corporations and limited liability companies are served on an officer, director, or managing agent, again with publication and mailing available if that can’t be done with reasonable diligence, and insurers have their own rule requiring the summons served on an agent to be followed by a registered-mail copy to the insurer’s principal place of business within five days.
Partnerships are treated distinctly: each general partner known to the plaintiff must be served individually, when the claim arises from partnership activity connected to Wisconsin, and the resulting judgment binds each partner served personally as well as the partnership’s assets wherever they’re located.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the first method a Wisconsin plaintiff must try to serve a natural person?
Section 801.11 lists personal service, within or outside Wisconsin, as the first option for serving a natural person. Substituted service at the defendant’s abode and, as a last resort, service by publication with mailing, are available only if personal service can’t be achieved with reasonable diligence.
How is a Wisconsin corporation served with a summons?
Section 801.11 provides for personal service on an officer, director, or managing agent of the corporation, within or outside the state, or leaving the copy at that person’s office with whoever is apparently in charge. If that can’t be done with reasonable diligence, publication and mailing are available instead.
How is the state of Wisconsin served in a lawsuit?
Section 801.11 requires delivering a copy of the summons and complaint to the attorney general, or leaving them at the attorney general’s office in the capitol with an assistant or clerk.
What extra steps apply when serving a minor or a person under guardianship?
Section 801.11 requires serving the person under disability in the same manner as an adult, plus a separate service on a parent or guardian who has custody (for a minor under 14) or on the guardian (for someone under guardianship), turning to a guardian ad litem if none of those people is available.
How does service work when suing individual partners of a partnership?
Section 801.11 requires the summons to be served individually on each general partner known to the plaintiff, when the claim arises from partnership activity connected to Wisconsin, and the resulting judgment binds each partner personally served and the partnership’s assets anywhere.
Amendment History
History: Sup. Ct. Order, 67 Wis. 2d 585, 602 (1975); 1975 c. 218; 1977 c. 339 s. 43; 1979 c. 89, 102, 177; 1983 a. 192 s. 303 (2); 1985 a. 225; Sup. Ct. Order, 130 Wis. 2d xix (1986); 1993 a. 112, 184, 265, 399, 491; 1997 a. 140; 1999 a. 32; 2005 a. 387.
Source & verification. Section text and official notes are
reproduced verbatim from the Wisconsin Statutes, published by the
Wisconsin Legislature (Legislative Reference Bureau). Last verified July 15, 2026.
· Official source
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