Circuit Court eFiling - eFiling a new adoption case as an attorney

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Purpose: Adoption (AD) and juvenile adoption (JA) case types are eligible for eFiling in participating counties. This procedure covers how to file a new adoption case as an attorney.

Applicable Users: Attorneys

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eFile a new adoption case as an attorney

1. Visit the eFiling website at https://efiling.wicourts.gov/ and log in. For more information see the article Logging into Wisconsin circuit court eFiling.
2. Following verification, you are routed to the Wisconsin Circuit Court eFiling home page. Select the file new case from the main navigation or the [File a new case] button from the bottom menu.
   
3. Select the county you are filing in from the County dropdown menu and the applicable class code from the Class code dropdown menu. Both adoption and juvenile adoption class codes will appear as 50601 – Adoption in the Class code dropdown menu. Select [Continue].
   
4. When the adoption class code is selected, the question, Is this filing for a minor? may display. Selecting Yes indicates this filing should be classified as a juvenile adoption (JA) case.
   
   Note: The Is this filing for a minor? question will only display for filings in counties that accept the JA case type for juvenile adoptions. If this question does not appear, the county does not accept JA case types, and the juvenile adoption should be filed as an AD case type.
5. If applicable, select the appropriate agency from the Which agency is this filing for? dropdown menu. Then, select the [Continue] button.
   
   Note: The Which agency is this filing for? question will be displayed for attorneys associated with county agencies.
6. Select the [Add party] button to add parties to the case.
   
   Note: The yellow banner will tell you what parties are required for the selected class codes.
7. Complete the New party window. Start by choosing the Party type, beginning with the filing party (i.e., Adoptive Mother for an AD case). Select the [Add attorney] button to add the attorney representing the filing party on the case.
   
8. Select the [Save and Add next party] button to add additional parties to the case.
   
9. If the party you entered requires an interpreter, select [Yes] and select the language needed form the [Language] dropdown.
   
10. When all parties have been added, review them for accuracy and select [Continue].
    
11. Select the [Upload documents] button to browse for and upload a filing document and other associated documents to the case. Review the bulleted list to ensure your documents are correctly formatted.
    Note: The yellow banner will tell you what filing document is required for the selected class codes. 
    
12. From the Document type dropdown menu, select the correct document type, and enter a descriptive title in the Document title text entry field. Select the [Continue] button.
    
    Note: An accurate and descriptive title is beneficial for identifying documents. The title entered here displays in the View documents list on the My cases page and is visible to the courts.
    If, after selecting the [Continue] button, the following red error message displays: “A filing document is required” you might not have selected the correct type of document to initiate the case you are filing. The system looks at the Document type field to determine if the correct document type has been uploaded.
13. On the Review page, review the filing for accuracy. You can select a document link to open and view any of your uploaded files. Select the [Continue] button when you are ready to proceed.
    
    Note: The Notes to Clerk text entry field functions like a virtual sticky note on your filing. Anything entered in this box is displayed to the clerk while they process your filing but is deleted once your filing is accepted. These notes are not permanently saved to the case.
14. On the Ready to file page, select the checkbox next to the filings(s) you wish to submit or a county name to submit all filings in that county. Select the [File] button.
    
15. On the Filings submitted page, select the [Return to main menu] button.
    
16. Once the circuit court processes the new case, you will receive an email confirmation, and the file-stamped document(s) will be visible on the My cases page of the eFiling website. The eFiling system generates an Electronic Filing Notice that will be printed and served traditionally along with other case initiating documents.