Any party may challenge venue, on the grounds of noncompliance with s. 801.50 or any other statute designating proper venue, by filing a motion for change of venue:
801.51.Challenges to improper venue.
Ch. 801: Commencement of Action and Venue · Last amended 1983 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceSection 801.51 lets any party challenge improper venue by moving for a change of venue at or before their first responsive filing, or later if reasonable diligence wouldn’t have uncovered the venue problem sooner.
Full Text of Section 801.51
(1) At or before the time the party serves his or her first motion or responsive pleading in the action.
(2) After the time set forth in sub. (1), upon a showing that despite reasonable diligence, the party did not discover the grounds therefor at or before that time.
Official Notes
Judicial Council Note, 1983: This section sets forth the procedure for challenging the plaintiff’s initial choice of venue on the grounds that it fails to comply with the provisions of s. 801.50 or any other statute specifying proper venue. The former statute’s 2-stage proceeding was unnecessary and tended to create confusion for unwary litigants. [Bill 324-S] This section and s. 801.50, the general venue statutes, do not apply to actions arising from consumer credit transactions. Rather, the venue provision in s. 421.401 applies. Brunton v. Nuvell Credit Corp., 2010 WI 50, 325 Wis. 2d 135, 785 N.W.2d 302, 07-1253.
Plain-English Summary
Section 801.51 gives a party the tool to object when a Wisconsin case has been filed in a county that doesn’t satisfy section 801.50 or another venue statute. The challenge is made by filing a motion for change of venue, and the section sets two timing windows for doing so.
The ordinary window is at or before the time the party serves their first motion or responsive pleading in the case — in other words, a venue objection generally has to be raised at the outset, before the party engages with the merits. The section also allows a later challenge, but only on a showing that, despite reasonable diligence, the party didn’t discover the grounds for the venue objection until after that first window had passed. That second path keeps the venue challenge available in the narrow case where the defect wasn’t apparent earlier, without letting a party sit on an obvious venue problem and raise it strategically down the road.
Frequently Asked Questions
By when do I have to challenge improper venue in a Wisconsin lawsuit?
Section 801.51 generally requires the challenge to be raised at or before the time you serve your first motion or responsive pleading in the action.
Can I still challenge venue if I already filed my answer?
Possibly. Section 801.51 allows a later challenge if you can show that, despite reasonable diligence, you didn’t discover the grounds for the venue objection before your first motion or responsive pleading.
What statute or rule is the basis for challenging venue under this section?
Section 801.51 lets a party challenge venue on the grounds of noncompliance with section 801.50 or any other statute that designates proper venue.
How is a venue challenge raised under this section?
Section 801.51 requires filing a motion for change of venue, rather than raising the objection informally or waiting for the court to notice the problem on its own.
What happens if I never raise a venue objection at all?
Section 801.51 ties the right to challenge venue to the timing windows it sets out; failing to raise it within those windows, without the reasonable-diligence showing for a late challenge, risks losing the objection, and section 801.50 separately confirms that a venue defect doesn’t undo an eventual judgment.
Amendment History
History: 1983 a. 228.
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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