WENDLANDT , J. The mother appeals from a decree issued by a judge of the Juvenile Court finding her unfit to parent her son, Talik, terminating her parental rights, placing the child in the care of the Department of Children and Families (DCF), and approving DCF's plan for adoption of the child by his foster parents. 2 The mother argues that (1) the judge impermissibly drew an adverse inference from her failure to attend the trial; (2) the evidence of her unfitness was stale and thus...
SHIN , J. This case involves a dispute over the administration of a share of a trust established for the benefit of the plaintiff and two of her three children. The plaintiff brought suit against the defendant trustees, claiming, among other things, that they committed a breach of trust by paying for fifteen years of storage fees out of trust assets. A judge of the Probate and Family Court agreed, ordered the defendants to repay the storage fees and other unaccounted-for sums to the trust,...
BLAKE , J. The married defendants, Peter J. Unitt, III (Peter), and Lee Peck Unitt (Lee), jointly operated a law office in Woburn prior to their arraignment on numerous crimes related to the theft and embezzlement of their clients' funds. 2 Their adult children, Jade Unitt (Jade) and Peter Unitt, IV (Peter, IV), posted bail on their behalf. 3 Neither defendant defaulted, and each subsequently was convicted of a subset of the charged crimes. This appeal presents the question whether,...
