Court Rulings

The plaintiff filed this action against his employer for breach of contract by failing to provide the plaintiff with severance pay after the employer terminated the contract without cause. The trial court granted summary judgment to the plaintiff, determining that it was undisputed that the plaintiff was terminated without cause, which entitled him to severance pay pursuant to the employment contract. On appeal, the defendant argues that a genuine issue of material fact exists and that the trial court erred in granting the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment by failing to conduct an objective inquiry as to whether cause was present to terminate the plaintiff's employment. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The plaintiff, the City of Cranston, appealed from a Superior Court judgment in favor of the defendants, the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, Daniel Nuey, and the Municipal Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island. In his decision, the trial justice ordered the City to arbitrate the grievance that the Union had filed on behalf of Nuey, after the trial justice found that Nuey had not retired from his position as a Cranston police officer and thus remained a member of the bargaining unit. On appeal, the City argued that the Retirement Board retired Nuey as a matter of law as soon as it granted his application for an ordinary disability retirement. In the City's view, at that moment, Nuey had retired and was no longer a member of the collective bargaining unit. The Supreme Court held that the ERSRI Retirement Board did not possess the authority to unilaterally retire a municipal police officer. Instead, a police officer retires after the Retirement Board determines his eligibility and that officer ceases his employment. Accordingly, the Court affirmed the judgment of the Superior Court.

Opinion - Other Justice Baker Grants Supervisory Control

The plaintiff, the City of Cranston, appealed from a Superior Court judgment in favor of the defendants, the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, Daniel Nuey, and the Municipal Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island. In his decision, the trial justice ordered the City to arbitrate the grievance that the Union had filed on behalf of Nuey, after the trial justice found that Nuey had not retired from his position as a Cranston police officer and thus remained a member of the bargaining unit. On appeal, the City argued that the Retirement Board retired Nuey as a matter of law as soon as it granted his application for an ordinary disability retirement. In the City's view, at that moment, Nuey had retired and was no longer a member of the collective bargaining unit. The Supreme Court held that the ERSRI Retirement Board did not possess the authority to unilaterally retire a municipal police officer. Instead, a police officer retires after the Retirement Board determines his eligibility and that officer ceases his employment. Accordingly, the Court affirmed the judgment of the Superior Court.

The trial court's determination that appellee established an implied easement by prior use for the leach lines located on his neighbors' property was supported by the manifest weight of the evidence where appellee proved by clear and convincing evidence (1) that appellee's land and his neighbors' land were part of a prior unified estate that at one point had been owned by the neighbors-appellants, (2) that before the separation took place, the appellants had installed the septic system on the land and placed the leach lines for the septic system on the adjoining property – and continued to use the leach lines for more than eight years (3) that the easement was reasonably necessary to appellee's enjoyment of the land and (4) that use of the leach lines had been continuous by whomever owned the property since the time the septic system was installed in 1994. In ruling on objections to a magistrate's decision, the trial court complied with the requirements to Civ.R. 53(D)(4)(d) as it performed an independent review of the record and ruled on all objections before adopting the magistrate's decision in full.