DALIANIS , C.J. In these consolidated appeals, the petitioners, Deere & Company (Deere), CNH America LLC (CNH), AGCO Corporation (AGCO), Kubota Tractor Corporation (Kubota), and Husqvarna Professional Products, Inc. (Husqvarna), appeal orders of the Superior Court ( Smukler, J.) granting summary judgment to the respondent, the State of New Hampshire, on the petitioners' constitutional challenges to Senate Bill (SB) 126. We affirm in part, vacate in part, and remand. I. Brief Factual...
DALIANIS , C.J. The respondents, Marco Dorfsman and the University of New Hampshire Chapter of the American Association of University Professors (Union), appeal an order of the Superior Court ( Tucker, J.) granting the petition for declaratory relief filed by the petitioners, the University System of New Hampshire Board of Trustees and the University of New Hampshire (collectively, UNH). The superior court vacated the arbitrator's decision that UNH had violated its collective bargaining...
LYNN , J . The plaintiff, John Farrelly, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Smukler, J.) granting summary judgment in favor of the defendants, Concord police officers Walter Carroll and Eric Pichler and the City of Concord (city), on the basis that the defendants are entitled to official and vicarious immunity. This case presents the question of whether our decision in Everitt v. Gen. Elec. Co., 156 N.H. 202, 932 A.2d 831 (2007) applies to intentional torts. We conclude that it...
LYNN , J . Following a jury trial in the Superior Court ( Bornstein, J.), the defendant, Craig Michael Sanborn, was convicted on two counts each of manslaughter, RSA 630:2, I(b) (2007), and negligent homicide, RSA 630:3, I (2007), as the result of an explosion that killed two employees at his gunpowder factory. The court sentenced him to consecutive terms in the state prison on the manslaughter convictions only. On appeal, the defendant challenges, among other things, the manner in which...
HICKS , J. The plaintiff, Steven J. Cohen, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( McNamara, J.) ruling that $250,000 that Cohen deposited into an investment account in the name of defendant John Raymond was an unconditional gift. Cohen argues, among other contentions, that the trial court erred by: (1) finding that the $250,000 was an unconditional gift, rather than a loan or a conditional gift; and (2) presuming that the $250,000 was a gift, thereby placing the burden on Cohen to show...
CONBOY , J. This appeal and cross-appeal arise out of a civil action by the plaintiffs, Jeffrey Frost, Frost Family, LLC (Frost Family), and Chretien/Tillinghast, LLC (Chretien), against Michael Delaney, individually and as former attorney general; the State of New Hampshire; the New Hampshire Banking Department (the Department); Karen Gorham, individually and as former assistant attorney general; Peter Hildreth, individually and as former commissioner of the Department; Maryam Torben...
LYNN , J. In this declaratory judgment action, the defendant, the State of New Hampshire, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Smukler, J.) granting summary judgment to the plaintiff, STIHL Incorporated, individually and doing business as Northeast STIHL (STIHL). The State argues that the trial court erred in finding that STIHL is not subject to RSA chapter 357-C, which regulates business practices between motor vehicle manufacturers, distributors, and dealers. See RSA ch. 357-C (...
BASSETT , J. The State appeals an order of the Superior Court ( McNamara, J.) dismissing 27 indictments alleging felony-level criminal violations of the New Hampshire Consumer Protection Act (CPA) by the defendant, The Mandatory Poster Agency, Inc. d/b/a Corporate Records Service. See RSA 358-A:6, I (2009). The trial court ruled that the indictments were defective because they alleged that the defendant acted with the mental state of "knowingly," and not "purposely." We affirm. The...
BASSETT , J. Following a bench trial in Superior Court ( Delker, J.), the court denied the petition of the plaintiff, Celestica, LLC (Celestica), requesting a declaration that the defendant, Communications Acquisitions Corporation d/b/a Whaleback Managed Services (CAC), is obligated to pay the balance of a judgment that Celestica had obtained against another business, the assets of which CAC had purchased at public auction. Specifically, the trial court ruled that, when CAC purchased the...
DALIANIS , C.J. The defendants, Exxon Mobil Corporation and ExxonMobil Oil Corporation (collectively, either Exxon or ExxonMobil), appeal from a jury verdict awarding approximately $236 million in damages due to groundwater contamination to the plaintiff, the State of New Hampshire, after a trial in Superior Court ( Fauver, J.). The State cross-appeals from the trial court's order imposing a trust upon approximately $195 million of the damages award. We affirm the trial court's rulings on...
LYNN , J. The plaintiff, Scott McCarthy, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Nicolosi, J.) granting a motion to dismiss his defamation action against the defendants, the Manchester Police Department (MPD) and MPD Sergeant Craig Rousseau, on the grounds that municipal immunity bars his claim. We affirm. I The trial court found, or the record supports, the following facts. On April 8, 2011, William Socha was working on a construction site in Manchester. At around noon, Socha noticed...
CONBOY , J. The petitioner, Merriam Farm, Inc., appeals a decision of the Superior Court ( Kissinger, J.) dismissing its appeal of a decision of the Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) of the respondent, Town of Surry (Town), on the basis that the appeal was barred by claim preclusion. We reverse and remand. The trial court found, or the record supports, the following facts. The petitioner owns an unimproved parcel of land in Surry with frontage on a Class VI road. The property is...
LYNN , J. The plaintiff, Renato J. Maldini, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Delker, J.) granting summary judgment to the defendant, Helen G. Maldini, on the plaintiff's action to enforce the divorced couple's contract regarding the allocation of joint personal income tax liability. We vacate and remand with instructions to dismiss the complaint for lack of jurisdiction. The record supports the following facts. The parties were married in 1985, and the defendant filed for divorce...
LYNN , J. The defendant, Edward C. Furlong, III, appeals an order of the Circuit Court ( Albee, J.) awarding judgment in favor of the plaintiff, the Town of Bartlett (Town), in a zoning enforcement action. See RSA 676:17 (Supp. 2014). The defendant's primary argument on appeal is that the trial court exceeded its jurisdiction by imposing a fine in excess of $25,000, but he also raises various collateral claims of error. Finding his arguments lacking in merit, we affirm the judgment of...
CONBOY , J. In these consolidated appeals, the petitioner, Diana Wolters, and the respondent, John Wolters, appeal orders of the Circuit Court in their divorce proceeding. The petitioner argues that the original trial judge erred by denying her motion to recuse the trial judge and to vacate all orders issued by her, and erred by considering tax consequences when determining the value of the parties' property. The respondent contends that the subsequent trial judge erred by denying his...
HICKS , J. The plaintiff, Danielle (Graveline) Gauthier, as mother and next friend of Morgan Graveline, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Garfunkel, J.) granting summary judgment to the defendant, Manchester School District, SAU # 37. We affirm. The following facts are derived from the trial court's order. On February 4, 2011, Morgan was involved in an altercation with another student, A.M., on a school bus. During that altercation, A.M. punched Morgan in the face. The bus driver...
BASSETT , J. The petitioner, JMJ Properties, LLC (JMJ), appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Delker, J.) granting the motion for summary judgment filed by the respondent, the Town of Auburn, and denying the cross-motion for summary judgment filed by JMJ. The trial court ruled that the Town, after learning in 2012 that JMJ's property no longer qualified for current use assessment because of a July 2011 change in use, was authorized to issue supplemental 2012 property tax bills based...
LYNN , J. The petitioners, Robert C. and Katherine L. Michele, trustees of the Robert C. Michele Revocable Trust (Micheles), appeal a ruling of the Wetlands Council (Council) upholding a decision of the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) to issue a permit allowing the respondents, Joseph and Linda Bremner (Bremners), to install a seasonal dock in water adjacent to the Micheles' pond-front property over which the Bremners have an easement. We affirm. I The following...
HICKS , J. The defendant, Christopher Kean, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Brown, J.) granting in part and denying in part his motion for return of property. See RSA 595-A:6 (2001). We vacate and remand. The following facts are derived from the trial court's order or the record. On September 4, 2012, the defendant, while wearing an official but discontinued Manchester Police jacket, was observed by Manchester Police Officer Biron walking in front of a Manchester Police...
LYNN , J. The plaintiff, David Eldridge, appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Temple, J.) granting summary judgment for the defendant, the Rolling Green at Whip-Poor-Will Condominium Owners' Association (COA), on his complaint alleging housing discrimination based upon his disability. The defendant cross-appeals an order of the Superior Court ( Nicolosi, J.) denying its motion to dismiss. We affirm. The following facts are supported by the record. The plaintiff is a resident and...
