drunk driving in wisconsin
faq's - frequently asked questions

If you wait until your court date to take action, it may be too late. You could lose your license -- even before you go to court. You must either demand an "administrative suspension hearing" or a "refusal hearing," depending on whether or not you submitted to a police blood or breath test, or refused to do so. Either way, the time limit is ten (10) days. If you don't demand a hearing, you'll lose your license, regardless of what happens in court. This isn't part of the court case, so you can't wait until you go to court to take care of it. You need to act promptly.

Call Van Wagner & Wood immediately! 608-284-1200

You received this form because you submitted to a breath or blood test and the result was over the legal limit for blood alcohol content (BAC over.08 for a first offense or.02 for a fourth or higher offense).

You have ten business days, not including holidays or weekends, from the Notice Data on that form to file an administrative review request (the yellow form). If you hired Van Wagner & Wood within that ten day period, they will complete the form for you and request an administrative review hearing on your behalf with the Department of Motor Vehicles. The Notice of Intent to Suspend form will serve as your temporary driving permit for thirty (30) days from the date of the notice.

Please read the Notice of Intent to Suspend form for any additional information.

At the end of that thirty (30) day period, your driving privileges will be suspended if:

(a) an administrative review request was not filed timely, or

(b) the administrative review hearing was lost (meaning that the suspension of your license was upheld).

At that point, you may be eligible for an occupational license (see Occupational License).

Call Van Wagner & Wood immediately! 608-284-1200

You received this form because you are alleged to have refused the breath or blood test and you have an additional “refusal” charge with your OWI charge.

You have ten business days from the Notice Date on that form to file a demand for refusal hearing. If you hired Van Wagner & Wood within that ten day period, they will submit a Demand for Refusal to the court. The Notice of Intent to Revoke form will serve as your temporary driving receipt for thirty (30) days from the Notice Date.

Please read that form for additional information.

Provided that you hired Van Wagner & Wood within the ten day period, your operating privileges will not be revoked while your OWI case is pending. The court will schedule your case for a refusal hearing where the court will determine if your refusal to submit to the breath or blood test was proper. The outcome of that refusal hearing will determine if your driving privileges will be revoked.

If you are convicted of the refusal, there is a mandatory minimum one year revocation of your operating privileges.

Because Wisconsin, like all states, permits only one driver's license to be issued to a person, a drunk driving conviction will always result in suspension or revocation of the person's commercial driver's license, or "CDL." A "CDL" is not a separate driver's license. It is actually an 'endorsement' conferring additional privileges to operate commercial vehicles requiring specific qualifications. It is an endorsement, however, based on issuance of a regular driver's license and, consequently, conviction of an offense requiring suspension or revocation of the driver's license always means that the "CDL" is revoked or suspended. This is true even if the person was not operating a commercial vehicle or 'as a CDL' at the time of the violation.

For those who are subject to federal regulation, a drunk driving conviction will be considered a "major" violation and, thereby, can result in legal disqualification under applicable federal rules.

Insurance carriers often have their own rules governing employment of drivers with drunk driving convictions. Though each insurance company makes its own rules, trucking companies who haul interstate frequently are unwilling to hire or retain drivers with a drunk driving conviction because their insurance carriers will not allow them to do so. Companies who only haul inside Wisconsin generally are not subject to such strict insurance requirements.

There are also specific drunk driving offenses that focus on those who operate a commercial motor vehicle after having consumed alcohol. Operating a commercial motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more is illegal in Wisconsin. A driver who tests at or above that level will receive an immediate 24 hour out of service order, in addition to the citation for violating the 0.04 prohibited alcohol concentration law.

At the Administrative Review hearing only the issues listed on the letter from the Department of Transportation (DOT) giving notice of the hearing will be heard.

If you hired Van Wagner & Wood, they will receive that letter giving notice of the hearing and they will provide you with a copy of it along with the police reports.

Van Wagner & Wood’s attorney will meet with a hearing examiner from the Department of Transportation to determine if your operating privileges will be suspended during the time of the court proceedings.

Van Wagner & Wood will then be notified of the results of that hearing by mail usually within one (1) day after the hearing occurs.

If you won at that hearing, your operating privileges will not be suspended during the court proceedings.

If you lost at that hearing, your operating privileges will be suspended thirty days after the Notice Date on the Notice of Intent to Suspend and Van Wagner & Wood will send you a letter with detailed information on how to get an occupational license.

Please note that the results of the administrative review hearing do not affect the outcome of your case in court.

Probably. But you may have to wait awhile first. Wisconsin allows an immediate occupational license after a first offense conviction. But there is a waiting period, which can be from 30 to 90 days, in other circumstances. Also, you cannot get an occupational license if you've already lost your license for some other reason in the preceding 365 days. Lastly, you'll have to file proof of insurance with the motor vehicle department to qualify for an occupational license. This is normally done by getting an SR-22 from your insurance agent, and is likely to lead your insurance carrier to raise your rates and, possibly, reduce your coverage. Driving under an occupational license is limited. Generally, you may drive for work purposes or for "homemaking," but you are limited to not more than 12 hours in a single day and 60 hours in the total week, according to a schedule that is maintained in the DOT files.

An occupational license may be obtained through the Department of Transportation if your driving privileges have been suspended, provided you were valid to drive before you were charged with OWI. Before going to the DOT, you must obtain SR-22 Insurance.

You may not obtain an occupational license before your suspension date begins.

If your driving privileges were administratively suspended, Van Wagner & Wood will send you a letter with detailed information about SR-22 insurance and obtaining an occupational license.

Please note that there may be other factors with respect to your driver’s record history that may prohibit you from obtaining an occupational license. For example, the Department of Transportation prohibits a person with two or more suspensions or revocations within a 12-month period from obtaining an occupational license.

In Wisconsin, a drunk driving conviction is a permanent part of your driving record. Since 1998, Wisconsin has counted all lifetime drunk driving convictions, even those before 1998, in calculating whether a drunk driving arrest should be prosecuted as a third or greater offense. So, unlike other violations, a drunk driving conviction is never purged from your Wisconsin driver record unless it is a first OWI conviction and you have no other OWI convictions.

In Wisconsin, as with most states, OWI laws are strictly enforced. Although you are not required to have an attorney, it is a very good idea to retain one if you have been arrested or charged with an OWI. If you have seriously injured or killed another person, there should be no questions as to 'whether', the question is 'when'. By immediately hiring a very experienced drunk driving attorney, such as Attorney Tracey Wood, your charges may well be greatly reduced or even eliminated.

While there may be some arguments that you can make in your defense, or mistakes that were made by the police, your chance of successfully making those arguments or finding those mistakes is much greater if you have an attorney assisting you sooner, rather than later. Invoke your right to remain silent, and ask to speak to an attorney. If you are facing an OWI charge, an attorney may be your only hope. Call us 24 hours a day at 608-284-1200 or email attorneys@vanwagnerandwood.com for a free and confidential initial consultation

Immediately! By immediately hiring a very experienced drunk driving attorney, such as Attorney Tracey Wood, your charges may well be greatly reduced or even eliminated.

While there may be some arguments that you can make in your defense, or mistakes that were made by the police, your chance of successfully making those arguments or finding those mistakes is much greater if you have an attorney assisting you sooner, rather than later. Invoke your right to remain silent, and ask to speak to an attorney. If you are facing an OWI charge, an attorney may be your only hope. Call us 24 hours a day at 608-284-1200 or email attorneys@vanwagnerandwood.com for a free and confidential initial consultation.

It is vitally important to contact attorneys@vanwagnerandwood.com immediately after receiving a citation for an OWI if you depend upon or are concerned about protecting your future driving privileges.

Depending upon how long you waited to hire Van Wagner & Wood past the ten (10) day deadline, it may still be possible for your attorney to file an administrative review request or a demand for refusal hearing. While the deadline date may sometimes be extended after your attorney files a motion, if the Department of Transportation notes that the administrative review request was not filed within the ten (10) day limit, your operating privileges will be suspended thirty (30) days after the notice date on the Notice of Intent to Suspend. If the court notes that the refusal demand was not filed within the ten (10) day limit, your operating privileges will be revoked thirty (30) days after the notice date on the Notice of Intent to Revoke.

Please note that it is vitally important to contact attorneys@vanwagnerwood.com immediately after receiving a citation for an OWI if you depend upon or are concerned about protecting your future driving privileges.

The attorneys of Van Wagner & Wood, S.C. provide an initial free consultation to evaluate the merits of your case and provide you with an honest straightforward opinion of the expected outcome. When your case is pending, there are several steps in the proceedings during which you need do nothing and until the pretrial conference nothing more than your statements are available to your attorney. During the process of your case moving through the system, your attorney is working on another case, in court, traveling to court, or unavailable because of time needed to prepare for an upcoming court case. It is because of these times that the attorneys at Van Wagner & Wood have taken the care and time to carefully train their support staff to be able to answer your general questions. The attorneys also encourage you to provide their staff with a list of your questions and any other information that you may need to communicate to your attorney so that when your attorney speaks with the staff your information is immediately available, answered, and communicated back to you by your attorney or your attorney’s assistant. Van Wagner & Wood’s staff has been with them for many years and can be relied upon to convey your information precisely and confidentially.

Whenever a decision must be made relating to your case an in person or telephone meeting will be requested with you and your attorney. If you need additional information, please be sure to inform Van Wagner & Wood’s support staff immediately so that they may arrange for an in person or telephone meeting during the attorney’s first calendar opening.

The attorneys at Van Wagner & Wood always recommend that you write down any questions or information that you may have and send the notes to their office or call them with the information or questions so that your attorney is informed of the information and able to review it as soon as he or she is available.

If you hired Van Wagner & Wood and if your case will have an administrative review hearing, the Department of Transportation will send your attorney a copy of your police reports along with the notice of that hearing. At the pretrial conference, your attorney will usually receive the complete discovery on your case, including police reports and any supplemental information. Prior to this date, your attorney does not have access to the police reports. Depending on the county or municipality in which you were charged, the prosecutor may send your attorney the discovery before or after the pretrial conference.