The Poynter Institute Menu Donate State Editions * California * Florida * Iowa * Michigan * New Hampshire * New York * North Carolina * Pennsylvania * Texas * West Virginia * Wisconsin Issues * All Issues * Online hoaxes * Coronavirus * Health Care * Immigration * Extremism * Taxes * Marijuana * Environment * Crime * Guns * Foreign Policy * LGBTQ+ People * Joe Biden * Kamala Harris * Donald Trump * Mitch McConnell * Hakeem Jeffries * Ron DeSantis Media * PunditFact * Tucker Carlson * Sean Hannity * Rachel Maddow * Bloggers * PolitiFact Videos Campaigns * 2024 Elections Truth-o-Meter * True * Mostly True * Half True * Mostly False * False * Pants on Fire Promises * Biden Promise Tracker * Trump-O-Meter * Obameter * Latest Promises About Us * Our Process * Our Staff * En Español * Who pays for PolitiFact? * Advertise with Us * Suggest a Fact-check * Corrections and Updates * Newsletters Donate #### Follow us The Facts Newsletter Sign up English Español ### Get PolitiFact in your inbox. * Weekly Email Newsletter * Daily Email Newsletter Your Email Address Sign Up ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Burns stated on February 6, 2018 in a TV ad: Says he is \"one of America\'s leading consumer lawyers.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") * Candidate Biography * Consumer Safety * Corporations * Legal Issues * Wisconsin * Tim Burns ![\\"Tom](\\" By Tom Kertscher February 15, 2018 # Tim Burns, who mostly represents businesses suing insurers, misleads in calling self consumer lawyer Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Tim Burns, a Democrat outspoken about his liberal political views, describes himself as the grandson of Mississippi sharecroppers who is running for \"people who struggle.\" In his first TV ad, released Feb. 6, 2018, the Madison attorney portrays himself in a similar vein when the narrator says: Meet Tim Burns. He grew up without much and became one of America’s leading consumer lawyers. But if you’re picturing an attorney who mainly represents individuals,that’s not Burns. Burns, who faces left-leaning Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Rebecca Dallet and conservative Sauk County Circuit Court Judge Michael Screnock in the Feb. 20, 2018 primary, has represented individuals in some class-action lawsuits. But his specialty is representing big businesses, not consumers, that sue their insurance companies. And leaving aside the claim in his TV ad, Burns has often described himself as having major business clients, not as a consumer lawyer. Overview of Burns’ legal background A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel review of Burns’ legal background found: * He has a law practice that focuses on suing insurers. * His clients have included a mining company that couldn’t get an insurance payout when a Colorado quarry collapsed in a landslide and all mining ceased; and Stryker Corp., a Michigan manufacturer suing its insurer because the insurer denied coverage for injury claims filed by people who alleged the company’s \"Uni-knee\" knee replacement product was defective and caused injuries. * Burns told the Journal Sentinel about representing Stryker: \"I wasn’t representing the client against the little guy. I was representing the client against the big insurance company. … What I’m trying to do is to get the insurance company to pay for the problem because insurance companies have promised to pay for problems.\" But, to be clear, in that case Burns was not representing an individual suing a hip replacement manufacturer. Rather, he was representing the manufacturer in a lawsuit, with the manufacturer trying to get its insurance company to pay individuals for claims about injuries caused by its products. That’s in contrast to consumer attorneys such as Milwaukee lemon law lawyer Vince Megna, who built his career by suing car dealers and manufacturers, and ran for the Supreme Court in 2013. Burns’ evidence To back Burns’ claim about being a consumer lawyer, his campaign began its description of Burns’ legal work to us by saying he built a national practice representing policyholders, \"otherwise known as insurance consumers.\" Burns himself told us: \"I’m using a dictionary definition of consumer,\" in that businesses consume insurance. \"I am 100 percent a consumer lawyer,\" he said. But the usual understanding of a consumer -- particularly in the context of Burns’ campaigning as a fighter for ordinary people -- is an individual. The understanding is not that a business is a consumer simply because it buys insurance. #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 10, 2024 in a Facebook post Patron, Don Julio and Pink Whitney tequila recalled because they contained fecal matter. ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Jeff Cercone • September 13, 2024 Burns’ campaign also cited to us a page from the website of Perkins Coie; Burns is a partner in the Seattle-based law firm’s Madison office. That page says the firm’s insurance recovery attorneys (Burns is one) have helped shape \"pro-policyholder law.\" But the page doesn’t mention consumers. In contrast, the firm touts having represented \"leading companies in almost every industry, including Fortune 500 and Global 500 companies, as well as public sector policyholders.\" Burns’ campaign also cited a handful of cases in which Burns represented individuals. In a 2015 lawsuit, for example, he and other lawyers represented a New York man in a class-action lawsuit. The suit claimed MetLife was not setting aside the required reserves for the purpose of paying potential insurance claims and that MetLife should reimburse him and the other class members for premiums they paid. But by and large, Burns’s clients are not individuals, but businesses -- as he himself has stated on at least three occasions. Burns’ own statements 1\. Answering candidate questions from the nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum, Burns emphasized his business clients when he wrote: I’ve built a national practice as one of America’s leading attorneys in standing up to massive insurance companies. I have been hired by major businesses in three dozen states and 10 foreign countries to handle their most sensitive insurance issues, but I’ve also represented regular working people in class actions seeking to hold insurance companies accountable for financial fraud …. In the current field of candidates and on the current Supreme Court, I have the most experience working with American businesses by far. I’ve been hired by the many of the top manufacturing, banking, and investment companies in the world or their boards of directors to advise them on their most sensitive issues concerning liability and insurance. 2\. His campaign website also touts major clients, saying: Tim is one of America\'s leading attorneys in standing up to large insurance companies. Tim has been hired by major clients in three dozen states and ten foreign countries to handle their most sensitive issues. 3\. The profile Burns put on the business networking site LinkedIn says: Tim Burns is a member of the Insurance Recovery Practice group at Perkins Coie LLP. The Insurance Recovery Practice group has more than thirty lawyers who devote their practice to representing corporate policyholders in insurance coverage matters. And Burns’s profile on his law firm’s website also cites business: Tim is favorably ranked in the 2006 (Illinois), 2007 (recommended in \"Insurance\" nationally), and 2008 to 2016 (Band 2 - nationally) editions of Chambers USA: America\'s Leading Lawyers for Business. The picture is clear. Our rating Burns says he is \"one of America\'s leading consumer lawyers.\" The bulk of his legal work is not representing individual consumers, but rather large businesses that are suing their insurers. We rate Burns’ statement False. Share the Facts 2018-02-15 17:29:56 UTC PolitiFact ![\\"PolitiFact\\"](\\" logo-big.jpg\\"/) 2 1 7 ![\\"PolitiFact](\\" false.jpg\\") PolitiFact Rating: False Says he is \"one of America\'s leading consumer lawyers.\" Tim Burns Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate ![](\\" In a TV ad Tuesday, February 6, 2018 2018-02-06 Read More info #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources YouTube, Tim Burns ad, Feb. 6, 2018 Email, Tim Burns campaign spokeswoman Amanda Brink, Feb. 12, 2018 Interview, Tim Burns, Feb. 13, 2018 Email, Rebecca Dallet campaign spokeswoman Jessica Lovejoy, Feb. 13, 2018 The Wisconsin Taxpayer, Wisconsin Policy Forum candidate questions, January 2018 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, \"Tim Burns hopes to join state Supreme Court but has only had one case in Wisconsin court,\" Feb. 8, 2018 Perkins Coie, \"Insurance Recovery Law,\" accessed Feb. 12, 2018 TopClassActions.com, \"Metlife Hit With Shadow Insurance Class Action Lawsuit,\" Jan. 22, 2015 Pacer, Continental Materials Corp. vs. Affiliated FM Insurance Co. lawsuit, Nov. 29, 2010 Pacer, Stryker Corp. vs. National Union Fire Insurance Co. lawsuit, Oct. 4, 2001 Insurance News Net, \"5 Class Action Suits Target ‘Shadow Insurance,’\" April 13, 2015 Perkins Coie, Tim Burns profile, accessed Feb. 12, 2018 U.S. Court of Appeals, decision in Stryker case, June 5, 2012 Tim Burns campaign website, \"About Tim,\" accessed Feb. 12, 2018 LinkedIn, Tim Burns profile, accessed Feb. 12, 2018 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Tom Kertscher slide 4 to 6 of 15 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 19, 2023 in an Instagram post: A wind turbine must “spin continually for over four years just to replace the energy it took to manufacture it.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • July 28, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" TikTok posts stated on July 15, 2023 in un video en TikTok: \"Biden elimina ‘tráfico sexual de menores’ como una de las prioridades del Departamento de Justicia de su gobierno”. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Maria Briceño • July 25, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 17, 2023 in an Instagram post: \"Florida to ban mRNA vaccines as credible evidence of biological weapons.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • July 18, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 26, 2023 in a Facebook post: Video suggests Canada wildfires were deliberately set to advance “smart cities” push. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 30, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 26, 2023 in a video: Women vaccinated against COVID-19 face \"unknown side effects that could perpetually go down through the lineage\" to their children. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 29, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 25, 2023 in a Facebook post: As of Aug. 25, \"Luis Rubiales has resigned as the president of the Spanish Football Federation.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 29, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 24, 2023 in an Instagram post: The World Health Organization said there is \"a possible causal relationship\" between COVID-19 vaccines and multiple sclerosis. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 28, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 9, 2023 in a Facebook post: Video shows military planes over Nashville \"dispersing materials into the atmosphere\" for geoengineering. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 23, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 20, 2023 in a Facebook post: “Official statement — Putin assassinated in the Kremlin!” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Tom Kertscher • August 22, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 8, 2023 in a Facebook post: \"The federal government has just declared a major food shortage emergency\" in six states. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 16, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Steve Kirsch stated on August 8, 2023 in a blog post: COVID-19 vaccines have killed 676,000 Americans. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Tom Kertscher • August 14, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 6, 2023 in a viral image: California passed a law “reducing penalties for oral, anal sex with willing children.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 9, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" TikTok posts stated on June 22, 2023 in a post: A new law allows people to permanently erase unpaid debt older than two years from their credit records. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 1, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 28, 2023 in a video: “Skin cancer is a relatively new phenomenon in the last 60 years or so.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 1, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on July 26, 2023 in a Facebook post: Says Bill Gates said, “We’re taking things that are genetically modified organisms, and we’re injecting them into little kids’ arms” in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • July 31, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 19, 2023 in an Instagram post: A wind turbine must “spin continually for over four years just to replace the energy it took to manufacture it.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • July 28, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" TikTok posts stated on July 15, 2023 in un video en TikTok: \"Biden elimina ‘tráfico sexual de menores’ como una de las prioridades del Departamento de Justicia de su gobierno”. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Maria Briceño • July 25, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 17, 2023 in an Instagram post: \"Florida to ban mRNA vaccines as credible evidence of biological weapons.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • July 18, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 26, 2023 in a Facebook post: Video suggests Canada wildfires were deliberately set to advance “smart cities” push. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 30, 2023 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 26, 2023 in a video: Women vaccinated against COVID-19 face \"unknown side effects that could perpetually go down through the lineage\" to their children. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 29, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 25, 2023 in a Facebook post: As of Aug. 25, \"Luis Rubiales has resigned as the president of the Spanish Football Federation.\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Tom Kertscher • August 29, 2023 ### Tim Burns, who mostly represents businesses suing insurers, misleads in calling self consumer lawyer * ![](\\" ![](\\" Threads posts stated on September 13, 2024 in a post on Threads: “ABC lost $27M in ad revenue after advertisers pulled ads from the network after the way they hosted the debate\" on Sept. 10. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Madison Czopek • September 15, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 8, 2024 in a social media post: Photos that show lists of school names are “school shooting lists.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Andy Nguyen • September 15, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 12, 2024 in an Instagram post: A video shows a body that Israel embedded with a bomb exploding during a Palestinian funeral procession. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Sofia 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Says he is one of America's leading consumer lawyers