Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly articles from August 2003

Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly archives from August 2003

Rhode Island Supreme Court Complete With Newest Member.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Sean F.W.J. Fowler The Rhode Island Supreme Court is finally complete with the recent swearing in of Paul A. Suttell as its newest judge. Suttell, a native of Providence, fills the last of the open seats on the five-member...

'Unhappy' Client Can't Refuse To Pay Counsel, Rules R.I. Superior Court Judge.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff A client could not refuse to pay her attorney for services rendered in a divorce proceeding, even where she was ultimately dissatisfied with the result in the case, a Superior Court judge has ruled....

Claim Against State For Taking Reservoir Denied, Rules 1st Circuit.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Sean F.W.J. Fowler The owner of a reservoir could not recover compensation for land taken by the state via adverse possession where the property had been transferred 20 years prior to suit, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has...

Moot Point In Moot Court Session In Providence.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Someone might want to check in with U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert B. Collings in Boston to make sure everything is OK. The judge recently reported having an "out of body" experience, and said he...

Rhode Island Superior Courts Case Summaries: August 4, 2003.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorneys Fees - Divorce Where a plaintiff attorney has filed suit claiming to be owed fees for representing the defendant client in a divorce proceeding, judgment should enter for the...

U.S. District Court Case Summaries: August 4, 2003.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Summary Judgment - Motion To Amend Where a U.S. magistrate judge has recommended that the defendants -- the state, the city of Pawtucket and two individuals -- be awarded...

U.S. Magistrate Judges Case Summaries: August 4, 2003.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Involuntary Dismissal - Failure To Appear Where a plaintiff has filed a complaint claiming that his civil rights were violated while he was incarcerated, the complaint should...

Rhode Island Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: August 4, 2003.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Retirement - Biceps Muscle Where a trial judge denied a plaintiff's request for workers' compensation benefits, the judge acted permissibly based on evidence...

Leader Of The Pack: Rhode Island Deputy State Court Administrator Gail Valuk.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff The next time you bump into Deputy State Court Administrator Gail Valuk, you might want to give her a high-five. Valuk has been selected as one of 40 state leaders from across the country to...

Rhode Island State Ethics Commission Case Summaries: August 4, 2003.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Conflict Of Interest Town Solicitor - Appearances Before Town Council And Zoning And Planning Boards Where an attorney, whose law firm serves as the Assistant Solicitor for the town of...

1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: August 4, 2003.
August 4, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Antitrust Puerto Rico - Chemical Protective Clothing Where a plaintiff filed suit alleging that the defendants violated a Puerto Rican antitrust statute by conspiring to destroy competition...

Bowman To Serve AsRhode Island Supreme Court Acting Clerk.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Bowman To Serve As Supreme Court Acting Clerk Supreme Court No. 2003-4 EXECUTIVE ORDER Pursuant to the power conferred upon me by G.L. 1956 Sect. 8-4-3, I do hereby designate...

Order On Mediation Conference Procedures Issued By Rhode Island Supreme Court.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Supreme Court Article I. Supreme Court Rules of Appellate Procedure Provisional Rule A Mediation Conference Procedures A(1.) Purpose of the Rule. The purpose of this rule is...

Evaluation Of RIBA Top Priority For President Of Rhode Island Bar Association.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff It's been less than two months since John M. Roney took over the helm as president of the Rhode Island Bar Association, and already he has big plans for RIBA. Chief among them is a survey of the...

Rhode Island State Ethics Commission Case Summaries: August 11, 2003.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Conflict Of Interest DEM Employee - Representation Of Third Parties Where the petitioner is an employee of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, it is our opinion that he...

Rhode Island Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: August 11, 2003.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Refusal Of Alternative Employment Where (1) a trial judge ruled that an injured employee refused to accept an offer of suitable alternative employment and (2) the...

Rhode Island Superior Courts Case Summaries: August 11, 2003.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Partnership - PSA Where a plaintiff has brought suit charging the defendants with breach of their fiduciary duties, judgment must enter for the defendants on the ground that a...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Case Summaries: August 11, 2003.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy In Forma Pauperis Where a tenant has moved for leave to proceed in forma pauperis in his landlord's bankruptcy proceeding, the motion should be denied on the ground that the...

1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: August 11, 2003.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Strip Searches - Qualified Immunity Where (1) plaintiffs, after being arrested for non-violent, non-drug-related misdemeanors, were subjected to strip searches and visual body...

U.S. District Court Case Summaries: August 11, 2003.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Search And Seizure Warrantless Entry - Exigent Circumstances - Inevitable Discovery - Wiretap Where a criminal defendant has moved to suppress statements he made to law enforcement...

Despite Cost Overrun, Co. Gets Fee For Project, Rules R.I. Superior Court Judge.
August 11, 2003... Byline: David L. Yas A company that did piping work on construction of a pharmaceutical plant was entitled to collect the $4 million it was owed for the project -- even though its fees exceeded the "target price" in the contract, a...

Reduced Sentence In Fraud Case Was Improper, Rules 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
August 11, 2003... Byline: Lisa K. Bruno A U.S. District Court judge could not give a defendant convicted of Medicare fraud a sentence five years lighter than the sentencing guidelines provided based on his "admirable good works," the 1st U.S. Circuit Court...

Rhode Island Superior Courts Case Summaries: August 18, 2003.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration Janitorial Services - Subcontracting Where an arbitrator has determined that the city of Central Falls could not lawfully enter into subcontracts for the performance of...

1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: August 18, 2003.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Arson - Newly- Discovered Evidence Where defendants (1) were convicted of arson and related crimes after a fire burned down their Boston business and (2) later moved for a new...

U.S. District Court Case Summaries: August 18, 2003.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Termination Option - Good Faith Where evidence indicates that a plaintiff exercised its express option to terminate a rhinestone colorization contract in good faith and was not...

Rhode Island Lawyers In The News: August 18, 2003.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers New Associations Robert H. Avery has been named vice president for human resources and general counsel at Roger Williams University. Avery will serve as the university's chief...

Rhode Island State Ethics Commission Case Summaries: August 18, 2003.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Conflict Of Interest Town Councilman - Abutting Liquor License Applicant Where the petitioner, a member of the Scituate Town Council, is an abutter to a business that has applied for a...

Employer Needn't Cover Worker In Car Crash, Rules U.S. District Court Judge.
August 18, 2003... Byline: John O. Cunningham An employer was not required to indemnify an employee who injured a third party in an auto accident on his way to purchasing a computer for home use, a U.S. District Court judge has ruled. The defendant...

Dissatisfied Gem Buyer May Cancel Agreement, Rules U.S. District Court Judge.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff A jewelry purchaser was entitled to a refund on a contract where it indicated dissatisfaction with the merchandise, even though the supplier continued to attempt to provide a suitable product, a...

Co. Gets Contribution For Cleanup Of Waste, Rules U.S. District Court Judge.
August 18, 2003... Byline: David L. Yas A company that paid for a cleanup of a hazardous waste site could recoup money from the operators of the site where the operators exercised control over illegal dumping, a U.S. District Court judge has found. The...

Rhode Island Commissioner of Education Case Summaries: August 18, 2003.
August 18, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Education Location Of Bus Stop Where a dispute has arisen as to the safety of a certain Middletown school bus stop, I find that the current stop is the most suitable of the available...

New Mediation Program In Rhode Island To Save Time, Money.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Jeanne Greeley Rhode Island Supreme Court Chief Justice Frank J. Williams invokes the names of everyone from President Abraham Lincoln to chef extraordinaire Emeril Lagasse when describing the motivation behind a new mediation...

Man Hurt On Boat Cannot Challenge Release, Rules 1st Circuit.
August 25, 2003... Byline: David L. Yas Where a seaman was injured on a fishing boat and signed a release after accepting $8,000 to settle the claim, he could not sue his employer for failing to properly explain the effects of the release to him, the 1st...

Mistress Can't Collect From Man After Affair, Rules U.S. District Court Judge.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Jason M. Scally A woman in a 23-year adulterous affair with a married man could not recover money damages from the man for unfulfilled promises of marriage and financial support after the relationship ended, a U.S. District Court...

Rhode Island Lawyers In The News: August 25, 2003.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers Promotions Corporate and private equity attorney Peter J. Barrett has been named a partner in the Providence office of Edwards & Angell. Barrett concentrates his practice in the...

Rhode Island Superior Courts Case Summaries: August 25, 2003.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Limited Partnership Agreement - Justiciable Controversy Where plaintiffs seek determinations (1) that, under the terms of a certain limited partnership agreement, defendants must...

U.S. Magistrate Judges Case Summaries: August 25, 2003.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Social Services SSI Benefits - Opinion Of Treating Physician Where the defendant Commissioner of Social Security is seeking confirmation of that agency's denial of a plaintiff's request...

Rhode Island Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: August 25, 2003.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Neck And Shoulder Problems - Causation Where a trial judge denied a claimant's application for workers' compensation benefits, the trial judge acted permissibly based...

1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: August 25, 2003.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Admiralty Injured Seaman - Release Where (1) a plaintiff who was injured aboard a fishing vessel brought suit against his employer alleging violations of the Jones Act and the warranty of...

U.S. District Court Case Summaries: August 25, 2003.
August 25, 2003... Byline: Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly Staff Tort Affair - Emotional Distress - Promissory Estoppel Where a plaintiff alleges that the defendant, while engaged in an extramarital affair with the plaintiff, made misrepresentations...