Wisconsin Supreme Court to rule on short term loan case

The highest court in Wisconsin will soon decide whether or not it is legal for a judge to force short term loan providers in the state to lower interest rates when the circumstances dictate. WSAU reports that the Wisconsin Supreme Court will hear a case that deals with whether the rate of interest charged by one firm to Jessica Mount on multiple loans are too high. The news source reports that a circuit court judge in Mount's case called the interest rate of between 446 percent and 1338 percent too high to manage. However, the firm that the woman is in debt to appealed the decision, first petitioning the Fourth District Court of Appeals, which turned down the case, before reaching the state's supreme court. Mount points to the fact that the company is violating the Wisconsin Consumer Act but the company says the debts were incurred prior to its passage, so it shoudn't be subject to the legislation. While the laws regarding short term lending vary from state to state, the alternative financing method continues to be popular with many.