Union, et al. v. Bloomberg, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-181-15)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports. If you find a typographical error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA, 02108-1750; (617) 557-1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us 14-P-1719 Appeals Court LAURI UNION & another[1] vs. SAMUEL BLOOMBERG & others,[2] trustees.[3] No. 14-P-1719. Norfolk. October 19, 2015. – December 2, 2015. Present: Berry, Green, & Blake, JJ. Contract, Settlement agreement. Condominiums, Common area, Management of trust. Real Property, Condominium. Damages, Attorney’s fees. Practice, Civil, Attorney’s fees, Trustee of condominium management trust. Civil action commenced in the Superior Court Department on July 7, 2009. The case was heard by Patrick F. Brady, J., on a motion for summary judgment, and a motion for attorney’s fees and costs was heard by him. Thomas O. Moriarty for the defendants. Arthur P. Kreiger for the plaintiffs. BERRY, J. This action concerns a settlement agreement between a condominium trust, among others, and the owners of property that abuts the condominium. The defendants, trustees of the Longyear at Fisher Hill Condominium Trust (collectively, the trust), appeal from summary judgment entered in favor of the plaintiffs, Lauri Union and Stanley Rosenzweig, whereby a Superior Court judge ruled that the settlement agreement obligated the trust to plant and to maintain a number of trees between the condominium buildings and the plaintiffs’ property.[4] On appeal, the trust claims that the settlement agreement is invalid because it violates certain provisions of the condominium statute, see G. L. c. 183A, §§ 1-23, and that the attorney’s fees awarded by the judge pursuant to the settlement agreement are excessive. We affirm. Background. The undisputed facts relevant to this appeal are taken from the parties’ joint statement of material facts, which we supplement somewhat, from the record. In 1999, Longyear Properties, LLC (Longyear), the condominium declarant and developer, began construction of four condominium buildings on an eight-acre parcel in Brookline (town), pursuant to a special permit issued by the town board of appeals (the board). CCCT, Inc. (CCCT), was established by Longyear as the initial condominium trustee, pursuant to a June 28, 1999, declaration of trust, recorded in the Norfolk County registry of deeds. Robert S. Roth and John J. Sullivan controlled both Longyear and CCCT. The plaintiffs own property across the street from two of the condominium buildings, referred to as buildings C and D. After completion of the first two buildings in the development, Longyear began construction on building C. The plaintiffs claimed that the location of building C was closer to […]