Dawson v. Goldammer

¶ 1. This case presents the natural corollary to Baierl v. McTaggart, 2001 WI 107, 245 Wis. 2d 632, 629 N.W.2d 277. In Baierl, our supreme court held that a landlord who includes an attorney's fees provision in a residential lease, which is specifically prohibited by Wis. Admin. Code § ATCP 134.08(3), may not enforce the terms of a lease against tenants who had prematurely abandoned the rental property. Baierl, 2001 WI 107 at ¶¶ 2, 5. The court determined that'the inclusion of the prohibited provision did not render the contract a legal nullity, but reasoned that to allow the landlord to…