Category: New Hampshire Court Opinions

196 A.2d 706 NATIONAL SHAWMUT BANK v. ELLEN JANE CUTTER a. No. 5132.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham.Argued October 1, 1963. Decided December 30, 1963. 1. A judgment for the defendant in a replevin action, without more, implies no direction for the return of the property or for the payment of damages, and a literal […]

392 A.2d 582 HENRY PATENAUDE v. TOWN OF MEREDITH No. 7967Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided September 27, 1978 1. Zoning — Planning Authorities — Planning Recreational Areas in Subdivisions In exercising their statutory discretion to determine the size of recreational areas in subdivisions, regulating boards must take relevant factors into account, and must […]

230 A.2d 735 IN RE ETHEL W. DEVIN ESTATE. No. 5601.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford Probate Court.Argued April 4, 1967. Decided June 30, 1967. 1. In a bequest of the residue of the testatrix’ estate in equal shares unto two named legatees “to them and their heirs and assigns,” where the two legatees had […]

29 A.2d 115 STATE v. ANGELO J. MUSCARELLO. No. 3354.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham. Decided November 4, 1942. The transportation into this state of more than three quarts of intoxicating liquor, though legally purchased in another State, is a violation of R.L., c. 170, ss. 33, 34. What is within the legally proved intention […]

769 A.2d 401 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. AMERIGAS PROPANE LP, INC. No. 99-278Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided April 9, 2001 1. Criminal Law — Defenses — Statute of Limitations Because the applicable statute of limitations in a criminal case provides the primary guarantee against bringing stale criminal charges, the doctrine of […]

50 A.2d 88 RITA NADEAU SIROIS, by her mother and next friend. v. THOMAS SIROIS. No. 3622.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough. Decided December 3, 1946. The fact that a ceremony of marriage, between parties domiciled in this state both before and after marriage, was performed in another state does not deprive the courts of […]

656 A.2d 830 ROBERT J. ARTHUR v. HOLY ROSARY CREDIT UNION No. 93-455Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford Decided March 28, 1995 1. Labor — Respondeat Superior — Independent Contractors Respondeat superior, or vicarious liability, ordinarily does not extend to torts by independent contractors because the employer reserves no control or power of discretion over […]

864 A.2d 335 RICHARD L. MAILLOUX v. TOWN OF LONDONDERRY a. No. 2003-790.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham.Argued: October 20, 2004. Opinion Issued: December 28, 2004. 1. Environment and Natural Resources — Environmental Rights and Actions — Burden of Proof Town failed to prove that it was a “qualifying holder” of property under the statute […]

404 A.2d 298 KOPKA REAL ESTATE, INC. v. ROBERT P. MacLEOD a. No. 79-048Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided July 11, 1979 1. Brokers — Commission — Right To A broker procures a customer if he informs him of the property and leads the customer to the seller. 2. Brokers — Commission — Right […]

273 A.2d 849 JOHN A. DAVY v. DOVER. No. 6068.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford. Decided January 29, 1971. 1. An order for examination of premises authorized by RSA 48-A:8 (III) (supp.) is synonymous with a search warrant authorized by Article IV, Section 4.1(b) of the city of Dover’s Housing Standards Ordinance which was adopted […]

589 A.2d 1008 MARLENE GNIRK v. PAUL E. GNIRK No. 90-106Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford Decided April 26, 1991 1. Divorce — Custody and Support of Children — Modification of Decree Decision of trial court modifying a support order will not be disturbed unless the court has clearly abused its discretion. 2. Divorce — […]

156 A.2d 753 THE PARISEAU CORPORATION v. STATE a. No. 4792.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough.Argued November 4, 1959. Decided December 31, 1959. 1. The unemployment compensation statute (RSA 282:6E) entitling an employing unit acquiring the trade or business of another employer, and intending to continue such business, to the merit rating of its predecessor […]

620 A.2d 1017 WELTS’ CASE No. LD-90-007Supreme Court of New Hampshire Original Decided February 12, 1993 1. Appeal and Error — Findings — Master’s Findings In reviewing findings of judicial referee in attorney disciplinary action, court’s only function is to determine whether a reasonable person could have reached same decision as referee on basis of […]

446 A.2d 1158 WILLIAM B. HARRIMAN a. v. CITY OF LEBANON a. No. 81-273Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton Decided May 24, 1982 1. Appeal and Error — Questions Considered on Appeal — Moot Questions The question of mootness is one of convenience and discretion and is not subject to hard-and-fast rules. 2. Municipal Corporations […]

424 A.2d 175 ANTOINETTE (AVERY) GRIFFIN v. ROBERT S. AVERY a. No. 80-086Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack Decided December 3, 1980 1. Divorce — Custody and Support of Children — Remedies for Failure To Pay To be considered a judgment for the purposes of full faith and credit clause of the United States Constitution, […]

465 A.2d 1203 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. CHARLES COBB No. 82-392Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided July 19, 1983 1. Witnesses — Impeachment — Prior Convictions The supreme court saw no reason to depart from the rationale of its decision the same day in State v. Robinson rejecting a claim similar to […]

384 A.2d 486 ALLSTATE INSURANCE COMPANY v. DANIEL O’SHAUGHNESSY a. No. 7711Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided February 3, 1978 1. Insurance — Automobile Policies — Law Governing Policy Where automobile liability policy issued by insurer to insured was issued in Maine, covering automobile registered in Maine, policy must be interpreted under applicable Maine […]

382 A.2d 914 JOHN BRACK, ADMINISTRATOR ESTATE OF JUDITH BRACK v. MIDDLESEX MUTUAL INSURANCE CO., a. No. 7743Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided February 3, 1978 1. Insurance — Automobile Policies — Uninsured Motorist Coverage Where plaintiff’s decedent, who was killed while passenger in car owned and operated by insured motorist, had insurance under […]

634 A.2d 1340 WOOD’S CASE No. LD-92-009Supreme Court of New Hampshire Original Decided November 23, 1993 1. Attorneys — Code of Professional Responsibility — Disciplinary Rules Professional Conduct Rule prohibiting a lawyer from representing “another person” in a matter in which the lawyer has formerly represented a different client does not encompass a lawyer’s pro […]

674 A.2d 156 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. MICHAEL RUSSO No. 94-671Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided April 4, 1996 1. Trial — Generally — Mistrial Defendant’s claim of mistrial based on self-incrimination was not adequately preserved because although defendant objected generally to the prosecutor’s question, he never moved for a mistrial before […]

95 A.2d 112 ALICE W. WILSON v. ARLENE E. GOODNOW. No. 4191.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Cheshire. Decided March 3, 1953. Where there are no requests for findings or rulings and the sole exception is to the verdict as rendered, the question for consideration by the Supreme Court under its discretionary procedure is whether there […]

871 A.2d 72 DENA DELUCCA a.v. ROLAND H. DELUCCA. No. 2004-247.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap County Probate Court.Argued: January 12, 2005. Opinion Issued: April 8, 2005. 1. Property — Partition — Generally An action for partition calls upon the court to exercise its equity powers and consider the special circumstances of the case, in […]

55 A.2d 471 RALPH W. COLEMAN v. RALPH K. COLEMAN. RALPH K. COLEMAN a. v. RALPH W. COLEMAN a. No. 3679.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough. Decided November 4, 1947. Remaindermen may not compel partition or a partition sale under the provisions of R. L., c. 410, ss. 1, 25, as against a life tenant […]

234 A.2d 534 DONALD R. BRYANT, Adm’r w/w/a v. RAIMOND BOWLES a. No. 5629.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham.Argued September 7, 1967. Decided October 31, 1967. 1. Summary judgment procedure (RSA 491:8-a) was held properly to have been invoked in an action on promissory notes where the affidavits and exhibits submitted in support thereof disclosed […]

550 A.2d 91 CATHERINE BARTON a. v. H.D. RIDERS MOTORCYCLE CLUB, INC. a. No. 87-381Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton Decided October 31, 1988 1. Zoning — Ordinances — Violation To have statutory standing to seek injunctions or abatement orders to cure a zoning violation, a private plaintiff must generally show that the public nuisance […]

388 A.2d 940 TOWN OF NOTTINGHAM v. LEE HOMES, INC., a. No. 7939Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided June 19, 1978 1. Zoning — Application for Subdivision — Legal Authority To Regulate Subdivisions Where developer applied to planning board for approval of proposed subdivision of its property and application was denied in 1972, and […]

871 A.2d 54 GARRY K. HARRINGTON v. CONCORD GENERAL MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY. No. 2004-612.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Cheshire.Argued: February 9, 2005. Opinion Issued: March 21, 2005. 1. Insurance — Policies — Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists Statute pertaining to uninsured or hit-and-run motor vehicle coverage requires only that uninsured motorist coverage be provided to policy holders in […]

494 A.2d 254 JAMES R. POLIZZO a. v. TOWN OF HAMPTON a. No. 84-276Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided April 18, 1985 1. Highways — Public Roads A public highway may be created in any one of four ways: (1) through the taking of land by eminent domain and the laying out of a […]

607 A.2d 127 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. ROBERT DAVID DEDRICK No. 91-041Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided May 1, 1992 1. Trial — Instructions — Review Claim that trial court erroneously instructed or refused to instruct the jury, or refused to answer a jury question in language requested by defendant, must be […]

467 A.2d 246 GOVERNOR’S ISLAND CLUB, INC. v. TOWN OF GILFORD a. GLENN W. SUTTON, JR. a. v. TOWN OF GILFORD a. No. 82-065 No. 82-075Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided October 28, 1983 1. Zoning — Variances — Burden of Proof The supreme court has adopted a five-part test for granting a variance […]

272 A.2d 591 STATE v. JAMES M. FLYNN. No. 5793.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough. Decided December 1, 1970. 1. Where an order of a district court purporting to vacate a sentence in a criminal case and to dismiss the complaint was entered after expiration of the time for appeal to the superior court, the […]

391 A.2d 886 ALBERT J. MILLARD v. EVERETT I. PERRIN, WARDEN, NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE PRISON No. 78-077Supreme Court of New Hampshire Original Decided September 18, 1978 1. Constitutional Law — Equal Protection — Legitimate State Purpose In deciding an equal protection challenge to a statute treating prisoners differently in the application of good time credits, […]

214 A.2d 116 HAROLD EICHEL v. ISABELLE PAYEUR. ELAINE D. EICHEL v. SAME. ISABELLE PAYEUR v. HAROLD EICHEL. LOUIS A. PAYEUR v. SAME. No. 5381.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Coos.Argued September 9, 1965. Decided October 29, 1965. 1. The testimony of jurors is incompetent to impeach their verdict. 2. The Trial Court may in its […]

652 A.2d 150 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. HAILE SELASSIE GIRMAY No. 93-192Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton December 30, 1994 1. Evidence — Relevance — Expert Testimony Where defendant failed to show how the social, cultural, and political world in his homeland was relevant to the issue of his state of mind at […]

156 A.2d 765 STATE v. FRANK GALLAGHER. No. 4716.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap.Argued December 1, 1959. Decided December 31, 1959. 1. A private park or a private way not laid out under authority of statute does not constitute a “way” within the definition of that term in the motor vehicle statute (RSA 259:1 XXXV). […]

770 A.2d 1097 STUART D. TRACHY a. v. RICHARD LAFRAMBOISE. No. 97-631Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack March 26, 2001 1. Public Employees — Removal and Suspensions —Governing Law Statute relating to discharge or suspension from employment applies only to individuals for whom county commissioners are either the hiring or appointing authority, and to disciplinary […]

461 A.2d 103 LORNE D. ARMSTRONG v. MARGARET C. ARMSTRONG No. 82-316Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford Decided May 6, 1983 1. New Trial — Discretion of Trial Court — Review The granting of a motion for a new trial, after notice and an opportunity to be heard, is within the discretion of the trial […]

26 A.2d 677 FRANK PETERSON v. GEORGE PAPPACOSTANTIS. RICHARD PETERSON, by his next friend, v. SAME. ROBERT PETERSON, by his next friend, v. SAME. KOULA PAPPACOSTANTIS v. SAME. STEPHEN PAPPACOSTANTIS, by his next friend, v. SAME. PAULINE PIERROCHAKOW v. SAME. MARY PIERROCHAKOW, by her next friend, v. SAME. KRISTIE PIERROCHAKOW v. SAME. ALICE ADAMS v. […]

625 A.2d 454 CHARLES J. BOISSONNAULT v. BARBARA A. SAVAGE No. 92-155Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided May 20, 1993 1. Property — Joint Tenancy — Severance Sheriff’s sale of husband’s interest in property to satisfy execution of judgment severed joint tenancy in property husband had with wife, thus converting the estate into a […]

283 A.2d 490 BOZIDAR VITIC v. NEW ENGLAND MORTGAGE INVESTMENT CORPORATION. No. 6253.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham. Decided November 2, 1971. 1. A finding that the defendant was obligated for an indefinite period to supply water annually during the summer months without charge to a house sold to the plaintiff was warranted by evidence […]

175 A.2d 519 GRACE D. PUTNAM v. NEW HAMPSHIRE DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT SECURITY a. No. 4940.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Cheshire.Argued November 7, 1961. Decided November 30, 1961. 1. An employee who terminated her employment because she was unable to find transportation from her home to the place of employment after a fellow-employee with whom […]

813 A.2d 1197 IN RE JUVENILE No. 2002-098Supreme Court of New Hampshire MerrimackArgued October 17, 2002 Opinion Issued December 20, 2002 1. Courts—District Court—Jurisdiction Provision of the Child Protection Act on the jurisdiction of the district court over proceedings alleging the abuse or neglect of a child confers jurisdiction to the court over any case […]

744 A.2d 1131 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. RAYMOND X. FLYNN No. 97-614Supreme Court of New Hampshire Coos Decided December 30, 1999 1. Offenses — Burglary — Evidence Sufficiency Lack of privilege or license to enter burglarized premises can be proven circumstantially without testimony from all owners or occupiers of premises. RSA 635:1, I. […]

363 A.2d 406 STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. WILLIAM T. SHUTT STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. MICHAEL F. DONOVAN Nos. 7290 and 7466Supreme Court of New Hampshire Nashua District Court Decided August 31, 1976 1. No mandate, express or implied, can be found in RSA 262-A:69-b (Supp. 1975) directing preservation of the ampoules used in […]

276 A.2d 6 WALTER BRUCHHAUSEN a. v. EDWIN C. WALTON a. No. 6075.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Coos. Decided April 5, 1971. 1. A conveyance of “all my right, title and interest in an easement over the northerly portion of certain premises owned by me” was properly interpreted as a grant of a new easement […]

412 A.2d 739 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. VIKTOR NOVOSEL No. 79-049Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack Decided March 13, 1980 1. Constitutional Law — Due Process — Sentence Because it would be extremely difficult to prove the actual existence of a retaliatory motivation, no vindictive motive on the part of the prosecution need […]

147 A.2d 114 JAMES T. LAMPESIS v. JOSEPH F. COMOLLI. No. 4700.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford.Argued December 2, 1958. Decided December 31, 1958. 1. Where the Supreme Court in awarding a new trial in an action of deceit because of error in the instructions to the jury on the issue of damages deemed it […]