Any person aggrieved by an objection to or failure to approve a plat may appeal the decision to circuit court within 30 days of being notified of the decision.¹ Parties to the appeal include the approving authorities and, where the failure to approve is based on an unsatisfied objection, the agency making the objection. The court will review the record following common law standards of certiorari:

• Jurisdiction – Was the body making the decision authorized to do so?
• Proper Procedures – Did it follow the proper procedures?
• Proper Legal Standards – Did it follow the proper legal standards?
• Unbiased Decision-Maker – Was the action arbitrary, oppressive or unreasonable and representative of its will and not its judgment?
• Substantial Evidence – Could a fair and reasonable person have reached the same conclusion based on facts in the record?

If the court finds the action of an approving or objecting authority arbitrary, unreasonable or discriminatory, it will direct that the plat be approved.

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¹Wis. Stat. § 236.13(5)

 

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