Marathon County Board votes to enter closed session to discuss ongoing litigation

The Marathon County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to convene in a closed session to discuss an ongoing litigation matter, citing Wisconsin Statute 19.85(1)(g), corporation counsel said. The adjourned annual meeting convened at 6 p.m. at the Marathon County Courthouse Assembly Room in Wausau.

Corporation Counsel explained the basis for the closed session before a motion was made, saying: “This closed session is to discuss a current ongoing litigation situation that we have, and, we do not wanna disclose to the other side of that litigation what our strategies in that litigation may or may not be.” The counsel’s explanation framed the discussion as a protection of privileged deliberations about litigation strategy.

Supervisor Robinson moved that the board “convene in closed session pursuant to Wisconsin statutes 19.85 (1)(g) conferring with legal counsel for the governmental body who's rendering oral or written advice concerning strategy to be adopted by the body with respect to litigation in which it is or is likely to become involved.” The motion, which referenced a case identified in the transcript as Francara v. Gerbert et al., was seconded by Vice Chair Dickinson and carried after a roll call; the transcript records the presiding officer declaring the motion carried and stating, “We will be in closed session.” The transcript does not record individual yea/nay votes or a tally.

Meeting logistics for the closed session were announced: the Webex meeting would be locked, non-designated individuals were asked to leave the room, and microphones would not be used during the closed session. The board had been identified in the meeting notice as composed of 38 members; no further public discussion or votes on other matters were recorded before the closed session began.

No subsequent public action or timeline for returning to open session was recorded in the transcript. The board's formal reliance on Wis. Stat. A719.85(1)(g) permits private consultation with counsel about litigation strategy; the transcript supplies the statutory citation only as read aloud during the motion. Additional details about the case named in the motion and any future public actions were not specified in the public record provided.

The board moved to closed session; next procedural steps or any outcomes from the closed deliberations were not disclosed in the public portion of the transcript.