City of Waukesha v. City of Waukesha Board of Review, 967 N.W.2d 460

Salem United Methodist Church owned 23.16 acres in the City of Waukesha; the assessor increased the 2018 assessment from $51,900 (2017) to $642,200 after the Church listed part of the property for sale and received a purchase offer.
The Church objected to the reassessment and petitioned the City of Waukesha Board of Review; at the hearing the City (via the assessor) and the Church both participated.
The Board accepted the Church’s valuation and set the assessment at $108,700 (rounded).
The City filed a certiorari action in circuit court under Wis. Stat. § 70.47(13) seeking review of the Board’s determination; the Board moved to quash, arguing the statute authorizes only taxpayers to seek certiorari.
The circuit court denied the motion to quash and granted relief to the City; the court of appeals reversed, holding § 70.47(13) does not authorize municipalities to commence certiorari actions. The Wisconsin Supreme Court affirmed the court of appeals.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a municipality may seek certiorari review of its Board of Review decision under Wis. Stat. § 70.47(13)	§ 70.47(13) governs only timing, not who may file; the City is a "party in interest" under § 70.47(11) and thus may appeal; the City can determine the filing deadline from the clerk's affidavit.	§ 70.47(13) ties the 90‑day appeal period to when the taxpayer receives the notice under § 70.47(12); § 12–13 mention the taxpayer only and provide no trigger or notice requirement for the City, so the statute authorizes only taxpayers to seek certiorari.	The court held the statute does not permit the City to seek certiorari under § 70.47(13); appeal rights there are for taxpayers.
Whether § 70.47(11)’s "party in interest" language implies a post‑Board certiorari right for the municipality	§ 70.47(11) shows the City has a protectable interest and should be able to continue to protect assessments by appealing.	§ 70.47(11) confines the City’s role to participation "before the board"; other statutes expressly grant municipalities certiorari rights when intended, showing the legislature knows how to do so.	The court held § 70.47(11) does not imply a certiorari right beyond proceedings before the Board; the absence of explicit appellate language is dispositive.

Sausen v. Town of Black Creek Bd. of Rev., 352 Wis. 2d 576 (2014) (board presumes assessor's valuation correct; presumption can be rebutted by objector)
Hermann v. Town of Delavan, 215 Wis. 2d 370 (1998) (chapter 70 establishes detailed methods for taxpayers to appeal board decisions)
Nankin v. Village of Shorewood, 245 Wis. 2d 86 (2001) (board of review procedures and taxpayer appeal rights under § 70.47)
Thoma v. Village of Slinger, 381 Wis. 2d 311 (2018) (standards for certiorari review of board decisions)
State ex rel. Collison v. City of Milwaukee Bd. of Rev., 397 Wis. 2d 246 (2021) (confirming narrow scope of certiorari review)
Ottman v. Town of Primrose, 332 Wis. 2d 3 (2011) (certiorari as mechanism to test quasi‑judicial decisions)
Kalal v. Circuit Court for Dane County, 271 Wis. 2d 633 (2004) (statutory interpretation principles)