Hyannis Anglers Club, Inc., et al. v. Harris Warren Commercial Kitchens, LLC (and a consolidated case) (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-063-17)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports.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 16-P-34 Appeals Court HYANNIS ANGLERS CLUB, INC., & others[1] vs. HARRIS WARREN COMMERCIAL KITCHENS, LLC[2] (and a consolidated case[3]). No. 16-P-34. Barnstable. October 14, 2016. – May 23, 2017. Present: Vuono, Massing, & Sacks, JJ. Consumer Protection Act, Unfair or deceptive act, Attorney’s fees, Damages. Fraud. Deceit. Damages, Consumer protection case, Deceit. Civil actions commenced in the Superior Court Department on September 6, 2011, and April 29, 2013. After consolidation, the case was tried before Christopher J. Muse, J., and a motion for attorney’s fees and costs was heard by him. Stephen Soule & Clyde K. Hanyen, Jr., for Hyannis Anglers Club, Inc., & another. John J. Lang for Harris Warren Commercial Kitchens, LLC. VUONO, J. Shortly after 5:00 A.M. on August 27, 2010, a fire erupted in the kitchen of a restaurant in Hyannis owned by Oceans Harbors, LLC (Harbors). The blaze originated in a “Pitco Frialator” (fryer),[4] a cooking appliance, which, some twelve hours earlier, had purportedly been repaired by a technician employed by Harris Warren Commercial Kitchens, LLC (Harris), a firm engaged in repairing commercial kitchen equipment. The restaurant operated on the first floor of a two-story building owned by Hyannis Anglers Club, Inc. (Anglers Club). The Anglers Club, Harbors, and their insurer, Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London (Underwriters), brought this action against Harris seeking damages for the losses caused by the fire and for violations of G. L. c. 93A, §§ 2 and 11.[5] Following a trial in the Superior Court, a jury found that Harris was negligent, and the plaintiffs were awarded $ 686,496.44, exclusive of costs and statutory interest.[6] Thereafter, the trial judge, who had reserved for himself the plaintiffs’ claim under c. 93A, entered findings, rulings, and an order in which he concluded that Harris had violated c. 93A when its employee, for whom Harris was vicariously liable, disabled a safety switch on the fryer, concealed this fact from Harbors, and falsified the associated work documentation in violation of the Attorney General’s rules and regulations regarding repairs and services, 940 Code Mass. Regs. § 3.08(1)(e) (1993). The judge ruled that this deceptive conduct “caused the fire that damaged plaintiffs’ businesses and property.” However, the judge declined to find, as the plaintiffs alleged, that Harris had wilfully or knowingly violated c. 93A, a ruling that foreclosed an award of […]
Melrose Fish and Game Club, Inc. v. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company, LLC (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-073-16)
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-1762 Appeals Court MELROSE FISH AND GAME CLUB, INC. vs. TENNESSEE GAS PIPELINE COMPANY, LLC. No. 14-P-1762. Middlesex. November 17, 2015. – June 20, 2016. Present: Cypher, Trainor, & Rubin, JJ. Easement. Real Property, Easement. Estoppel. Subdivision Control, Decision of planning board. Practice, Civil, Injunctive relief. Laches. Civil action commenced in the Superior Court Department on April 23, 2013. The case was heard by Kimberly S. Budd, J., on motions for summary judgment. Brian J. McNelis for the plaintiff. Dianne R. Phillips (Nathaniel F. Hulme with her) for the defendant. RUBIN, J. The plaintiff, Melrose Fish and Game Club, Inc. (club), sued Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company, LLC (TGP) in Superior Court for trespass because of TGP’s alleged interference with an easement[1] and breach of contract. The suit arises from TGP’s construction, in 1998, of a natural gas pipeline facility across the entire width of Cheever Avenue in Saugus, a paper street over which the club claims an easement. On cross motions for summary judgment, the Superior Court judge allowed TGP’s motion and denied the club’s. The judge ruled, first, that the breach of contract claim was barred by the six-year statute of limitations in G. L. c. 260, § 2; second, that the club’s easement over Cheever Avenue had been extinguished before it filed suit, either by estoppel or by frustration of purpose; and, third, that even if the easement still existed, the club’s request for injunctive relief would be barred by laches. The club appeals the second and third rulings. We reverse. Background. The club owns three lots of land in Saugus near the Melrose border. TGP owns a lot that shares a border with one of the club’s lots. The land making up these four lots, along with much of the surrounding land in Saugus, was once owned by Wilbur F. Newhall. In 1910, a plan subdividing Newhall’s land into dozens of different lots was recorded at the registry of deeds (1910 plan). The 1910 plan shows Cheever Avenue bounding lots 76-80, amongst others, on their northeast sides. Up until around 1999, Cheever Avenue was entirely a paper street.[2] In 1963, the club acquired lots 78-80 from Saugus (club lots), which had acquired the lots by tax takings between 1930 and 1951. The original deeds for those lots, as […]
Things to Know in the South End, June 6: Singles Auction at Club Cafe
1. Weather: The National Weather Service is predicting a sunny day, with a high near 75 degrees. 2. Pride Singles Auction: Tonight at Club Cafe, (209 Columbus Ave.) Boston’s MaverickMen, Cole & Hunter are emceeing a special Pride bachelor & bachelorette auction presented by the Theatre Offensive. Bid to win a wonderful date with one (or two) sexy singles. All winners will receive a gift certificate. Tickets are $ 5 in advance, and $ 10 at the door. See here for more information. 3. Art Show: The South End Community Health Center, (1601 Washington St.) has announced it will host its first ever art show on Saturday, June 15, 2013. The organization will bring together a number of accomplish artists to help raise awarness about their mission and impact in the South End. Twenty percent of the sale proceeds made during the show will support the nonprofit. See here for more information. 4. Book Talk: Boston Building Resources (100 Terrace St.) in Roxbury hosts a book talk with Jeff Deyette, the co-author of the Boston Globe bestseller “Cooler Smarter: Practical Steps for Low-Carbon Living,” tonight at 6:30 p.m. Based on two years of research and analysis, the book shows the most effective strategies for reducing your global warming emissions, and how to take action at work, in your community, and politically. See here for more information. 5. Markey in Chinatown: OK, it’s not the South End, but it’s close. Congressman Edward Markey, and candidate for U.S. Senate, will be at the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center (38 Ash St.) on Friday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. as part of a ‘Community Conversations’ Speaker Series. The idea is to offer the community a chance to have conversations with some of the most prominent decision-makers in the state. See here for more information. Things you can do every day on South End Patch: Share your news with the rest of the community. Click here to add an announcement. Add your events to our events calendar. Click here to sign up for breaking news updates. Want up-to-the-minute news? Click here to follow us on Facebook or Twitter. Share your thoughts on your community in a blog. Click here to get started. South End Patch
Local Woman Helps Run Girls Soccer Club in Haiti
What began as a 10-day trip to Haiti in 2011 for Taryn Silver turned into a new home and about 50 new friends. Silver, a former Sharon resident, helps run the Association Sportives des Jeunes Filles de Fond des Blancs (The Sports Association of Young Women of Fond des Blancs), a girls soccer club in the rural town of Fond-des-Blancs, about 70 miles west of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince. Silver moved to Haiti in 2012 to work for the St. Boniface Haiti Foundation in Fond-des-Blancs. It was there where she met Andover native Molly Klarman who had started the club last year. “On the streets and fields in Haiti you almost always see only boys playing soccer. This club offers the girls of Fond-des-Blancs a chance to play soccer, exercise, and have fun,” Silver said in an email to Sharon Patch. “We have 53 girls on our roster. The ages range from 13-22 with a few girls who are older (24, 26, 28). All of our girls are in school and live within a 35-minute walk to the practice field,” she said. The club offers an opportunity that Haitian women rarely get due to lack of funding, time and also due to the cultural roles Haitian men and women often play, Silver said. “Most girls that go to school have tons of chores they are responsible for doing after school. Including getting water, cooking food for the family, doing laundry and taking care of younger siblings,” she said. “I think it has mainly been for boys because of the gender roles in Haitian culture. We hope this club will help to shift those in the community and offer the girls a chance to be in the spotlight,” said Silver. When it first began the club had 20 girls. This year the roster has more than doubled in size. “Molly and I visited the schools in the community [in January] to invite new girls who might be interested. We thought we might have 25 girls interested, but now we have over 50 and girls keep showing interest,” said Silver. Silver said the club has been a success because it is fun for the women and it gives them confidence. Some of the girls shared why they like soccer and what the club means to them. The following are statements from some of the girls in the club that have been translated from Creole into English: Marie Danise Azor – 16 years old “I want to play soccer, because I love it so much. It is something important and that’s reason I want to play […]