The proceeds of the sale of such personal property, shall be applied in the payment of the costs of the action and abatement and the balance, if any, shall be paid to the defendant. The plaintiff may file a notice of the pendency of the action as in actions affecting the title to real estate; and if the owner of the premises affected be adjudged guilty of the nuisance, the judgment for costs shall constitute a lien thereon prior to any other lien created after the filing of such lis pendens.
823.14.Application of proceeds of sale; lis pendens.
Ch. 823: Nuisances · Last amended 1975 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceSection 823.14 sends the proceeds of a nuisance property sale first to the costs of the action and abatement, with any balance going to the defendant, and lets the plaintiff record a lis pendens that turns a costs judgment into a lien on the premises ahead of later liens.
Full Text of Section 823.14
Plain-English Summary
Section 823.14 picks up where the property sale ordered under section 823.13 leaves off. The proceeds of that sale pay the costs of the action and the abatement first. Whatever is left over goes to the defendant, not the plaintiff or the court.
The section also gives the plaintiff a tool tied to the real estate itself: a notice of the pendency of the action, filed the same way a lis pendens is filed in cases affecting title to real estate. If the owner of the affected premises is adjudged guilty of the nuisance, the judgment for costs becomes a lien on that property. That lien takes priority over any other lien created after the lis pendens was filed, which keeps the property owner from defeating the costs judgment by encumbering the premises after the fact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who gets paid first from the sale of property used in a Wisconsin nuisance?
Section 823.14 applies the proceeds first to the costs of the action and abatement.
Does the defendant get anything from the sale of the nuisance property?
Yes. Whatever remains after paying the costs of the action and abatement is paid to the defendant.
What is the lis pendens for under this section?
The plaintiff may file a notice of the pendency of the action, the same kind of notice used in actions affecting title to real estate, to alert others dealing with the property.
Does a judgment for costs become a lien on the nuisance property?
Yes, if the owner of the premises is adjudged guilty of the nuisance. The judgment for costs then constitutes a lien on the property.
What happens to liens someone creates on the property after the lis pendens is filed?
They rank behind the costs judgment lien. Section 823.14 makes the costs lien prior to any lien created after the lis pendens was filed.
Amendment History
History: Sup. Ct. Order, 67 Wis. 2d 585, 762 (1975); Stats. 1975 s. 823.14.
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
Also known as: wisconsin nuisance sale proceedslis pendens nuisance action wisconsinlien for nuisance abatement costswho gets money from nuisance property sale