Touher, et al. v. Town of Essex (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-099-15)
Affirmed judgment that homes built on leased town land became fixtures belonging to the town rather than personal property of the residents.
Town
Murray v. Town of Hudson, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-135-15)
Visiting student-athlete injured in town-owned bullpen. Town liable for negligence despite recreational use statute when hosting interscholastic athletic event.
Showtime Entertainment, LLC v. Town of Mendon, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-113-15)
Town bylaw banned alcohol at adult entertainment establishments citing crime prevention. Court upheld countervailing state interest but struck down the restriction as overbroad.
Galenski v. Town of Erving, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-067-15)
Retiree eligible for municipal health insurance contributions despite fewer than ten years of town employment. Statutory mandate preempts municipal policy.
Celco Construction Corp. v. Town of Avon (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-019-15)
Contractor bidding $0.01 per cubic yard for rock removal fails to obtain equitable adjustment when actual rock quantity exceeds estimate, despite statutory protection for unknown site conditions.
Drummey, et al. v. Town of Falmouth, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-017-15)
Town must obtain special permit from zoning board before operating wind turbine on municipal property; specific by-law provisions requiring permits govern over general municipal use exemptions.
Bay Colony Railroad Corporation v. Town of Yarmouth, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-011-15)
Federal law preempts state motor carrier regulation barring railroad-operated trucks in areas lacking rail service, even when transporting waste.
Kitras, et al. v. Town of Aquinnah, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-006-15)
Easements by necessity implied when tribal custom of common access predates partition of formerly shared lands into individual parcels.
Town of Athol v. Professional Firefighters of Athol, Local 1751, I.A.F.F. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-174-14)
Arbitrator ordered town to restore prior copayment rates and compensate firefighters after unilateral increase. Superior Court wrongly vacated remedies based on misapplied statute.
Twomey, et al. v. Town of Middleborough, et al. (and a companion case) (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-092-14)
Board of selectmen, not town meeting, has authority to set HMO premium contribution percentages for retired municipal employees under G.L. c. 32B, § 16.