Patrick Thomas Stone

United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin district Appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic) 23 signed orders read

How Judge Stone decides

Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.

What persuades

Stone favored resolving all claims from one transaction in a single action when third-party practice made that possible.

“All of the issues arising out of one transaction, in this instance an automobile collision, should be determined in one action.”

Stone required an evidentiary record before deciding whether a business was sufficiently connected to interstate commerce.

“Whether a business is or is not of a purely local character, for the purpose of Federal regulation, can be determined only upon an examination of the actual facts.”

Procedural preferences

Stone used discovery and pretrial procedure, rather than heightened pleading detail, to obtain transaction-specific information.

“This information, if not now in possession of defendants, may readily be obtained by defendants by interrogatories, depositions and discovery, or at a pretrial conference, as provided by statute.”

Stone applied claim preclusion to prevent the relitigation of an issue already decided between the parties.

“Public policy dictates that there be an end of litigation; that those who have contested an issue shall be bound by the result of the contest, and that matters once tried shall be considered forever settled as between the parties.”

Cautions

Stone declined exceptional patent-case fees without evidence of litigation misconduct or bad faith.

“There is no evidence in this record of any dilatory tactics, or of any vexations or oppressive conduct on the part of plaintiff’s counsel.”

Signed rulings

A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.

New Discoveries, Inc. v. Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
· 1936-01-28
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Granted

“It is ordered and decreed, that defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s bill of complaint be and it is hereby granted, without costs.”

Tully v. Prudential Ins. Co. of America
· 1940-07-12
Summary judgment (plaintiff) Granted

“the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment will be granted, with costs.”

Pliner v. Nesvig
· 1942-01-06
Motions to dismiss (defendants) Denied

“The Court is satisfied that the complaint states a cause of action, and the defendants’ motion to dismiss is denied.”

Leonard v. Socony-Vacuum Oil Co.
· 1942-01-08
Summary judgment (defendants) Granted in part

“Defendants’ motion for a summary judgment dismissing that portion of the plaintiff’s claim referred to herein is granted, and the case will stand for trial on the other issues.”

Russell v. Superior Journal Co.
· 1942-10-27
Summary judgment (defendant) Granted

“The defendant, Mary E. Baxter, is entitled to a summary judgment denying plaintiff’s claim for a deficiency judgment”

United States ex rel. Beers v. Selective Training & Service Local Board No. 1
· 1943-05-19
Petition for writ of certiorari (petitioner) Moot / procedural

“This Court declines, for the reasons aforesaid, to take jurisdiction of the petition for the issuance of the writ to the Local Board.”

Brown v. Winter
· 1943-07-20
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Denied

“Defendant’s motion to dismiss the complaint is denied.”

Preliminary injunction (plaintiff) Granted

“Plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction is granted, with costs.”

Bowles v. Cook Cheese Co.
· 1944-05-19
Motions to dismiss (defendants) Denied

“It is, therefore, ordered that the motion of the defendants to dismiss the complaint herein be and the same is hereby denied, without costs.”

United States v. Certain Land
· 1944-07-06
Motion to vacate (respondents) Denied

“It is therefore ordered that the motion of respondents to vacate the order granting possession to petitioner and quashing these proceedings be and the same is hereby denied.”

Employers Mut. Liability Ins. of Wisconsin v. Underwriters at Lloyd's
· 1948-09-15
Judgment on the pleadings (plaintiff) Granted

“Plaintiff’s motion for judgment as prayed for in the complaint is granted.”

Reed v. Kelly
· 1948-10-28
Motion to dismiss or summary judgment (defendant) Granted

“Defendant’s motion to dismiss the plaintiff’s complaint and for summary judgment in favor of defendant is granted, without costs.”

Vischer Products Co. v. National Pressure Cooker Co.
· 1950-06-30
Motion for attorney fees (defendant) Denied

“The defendant’s motion is denied, without costs.”

Caseload & timing

From public federal docket records for this judge.

No assigned docket records were returned for Stone’s tenure, so no caseload mix or case-duration summary is available.

Put Judge Stone's record to work

Ezel drafts and answers grounded in this exact profile: how Judge Stone actually rules, not a generic AI guess.

Opens in Ezel Pro. Every answer is grounded in Judge Stone's own signed orders and cites them.