Category: New Hampshire Court Opinions

157 A.2d 651 IRVING SCAMMON a. v. HARRY PAGE. No. 4796.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham.Argued January 5, 1960. Decided January 27, 1960. 1. Where the plaintiffs’ opening statement was insufficient to support a claim of causal negligence and their counsel was given several opportunities by the Trial Court to amend or enlarge such statement […]

364 A.2d 875 LEO F. FEELEY IV v. GEORGE SAMPSON, SHERIFF, ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, a. No. 7253Supreme Court of New Hampshire Original Decided September 30, 1976 1. An examination of the record disclosed evidence to support the trial court’s ruling continuing the original bail while plaintiff was awaiting his second trial and disclosed no evidence that […]

101 A.2d 781 RICHARD L. BURGESS v. BOSTON MAINE RAILROAD. No. 4210.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough.Argued October 6, 1953. Decided December 21, 1953. In an action to recover for injuries sustained by the plaintiff as the result of a collision at a grade crossing at dusk between his truck and defendant’s locomotive on an […]

622 A.2d 1238 PAUL DUMONT v. TOWN OF WOLFEBORO No. 91-514Supreme Court of New Hampshire Carroll Decided March 30, 1993 1. Easements — Operation and Effect — Generally Defining rights of parties to an expressly deeded easement requires determining parties’ intent in light of circumstances at the time the easement was granted. 2. Deeds — […]

130 A.2d 278 LOUIS C. WYMAN, Attorney General v. WILLARD UPHAUS. No. 4533.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack.Argued December 4, 1956. Decided February 28, 1957. Although since the decision in Pennsylvania v. Nelson, 350 U.S. 497, the State is without authority to prosecute offenses of a seditious or subversive nature against the federal government the […]

392 A.2d 143 ADELARD BERTHIAUME a. v. CITY OF NASHUA No. 78-067Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided September 27, 1978 1. Taxation — Real Property — Assessments In a suit for real property tax abatement, plaintiff owners of a shopping center had the burden of showing that the assessment placed on shopping center was […]

380 A.2d 258 BOARD OF PORTSMOUTH POLICE COMMISSIONERS v. STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR ROBERT M. DUVALL, COMMISSIONER JOHN C. CONNORS ROBERT T. FINNEY PAUL F. HEBERT No. 7799Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided November 16, 1977 Public Employees — Compensation — Punishment Duty Where police officers, who were charged with violations […]

421 A.2d 121 APPEAL OF GRANITE STATE ELECTRIC COMPANY (New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission) No. 79-365Supreme Court of New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission Decided September 3, 1980 1. Public Utilities — Orders — Modifications Utility companies and consumers are entitled to rely on “permanent” rates established under final orders of the public utilities commission, and […]

392 A.2d 147 ROBERT W. HUNNEYMAN v. THERESA H. HUNNEYMAN No. 78-080Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack Decided September 27, 1978 Divorce — Trial Court — Discretion Trial court did not abuse its discretion in not awarding alimony, in reducing the amount of child support payments from that awarded on a temporary basis, and in […]

769 A.2d 373 HERON COVE ASSOCIATION a. v. DVMD HOLDINGS, INC. a. No. 98-776Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided March 29, 2001 1. Zoning and Planning — Judicial Review — Jurisdiction Upon grant of certiorari, superior court may review the decision of a planning board, and may reverse, affirm, or modify that decision where […]

440 A.2d 441 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. NEIL D. BIRD No. 80-497Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided January 15, 1982 1. Trial — Instructions — Generally A trial judge’s primary duty in charging the jury is to clarify the issues of the case, and to assist the jury in understanding the questions […]

150 A.2d 403 LEO PERRON v. CONCORD. No. 4681.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack.Argued March 3, 1959. Decided April 7, 1959. 1. The occupation of roofing contractor was held not to be a “customary home occupation” within the meaning of a zoning ordinance provision which permitted dwellings in a general residence district to be used […]

58 A.2d 207 JOHN E. SWANSON v. OLIVER W. PRIEST a. No. 3691.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham. Decided March 2, 1948. There is no requirement that a memorandum for the sale of land to be valid must be signed by the purchaser. Mutuality of remedy is not essential to specific performance of a written […]

386 A.2d 1278 NASHUA GARDEN CORPORATION v. ROBERT GORDON a. No. 78-008Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided May 17, 1978 1. Deeds and Conveyances — Restrictive Covenants — Changed Conditions Where deed expressly subjected ten-acre parcel of land to certain restrictive covenants, and court refused to find that conditions had sufficiently changed in the […]

146 A.2d 262 KEENE v. ELTON W. BLOOD a. No. 4688.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Cheshire.Argued November 5, 1958. Decided November 28, 1958. 1. Where a municipal zoning ordinance prohibited apartments on the third floor of buildings located in a single residence district and further provided that the third floor of buildings in such district […]

381 A.2d 32 DAVID A. WILSON AND MARCIA A. WILSON v. MELVIN E. CAME No. 7872Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford Decided December 16, 1977 Appeal and Error — Evidence — Sufficiency of Evidence Review of record from trial for assessment of damages resulting in verdict for plaintiffs in amount of $2,500 revealed ample evidence […]

567 A.2d 188 BLUE JAY REALTY TRUST v. CITY OF FRANKLIN No. 89-011Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack Decided December 13, 1989 1. Constitutional Law — Taking — Exhaustion of Remedies Court properly dismissed federal taking and due process compensation claims predicated on a zoning restriction, absent allegation that the landowner sought and was denied […]

11 A.2d 818 MICHAEL MITRICH, by his mother and next friend v. JONES STEVENS TUTTLE a. No. 3136.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford. Decided March 5, 1940. In an action against the operators of two automobiles for causing injuries to a passenger by their negligent operation and collision, the record of a plea of guilty […]

697 A.2d 943 LAWRENCE M. HOEPP v. STATE FARM INSURANCE COMPANY No. 95-755Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough-northern judicial district Decided July 18, 1997 1. Contracts — Construction — Exclusionary Language On appeal, the interpretation of exclusionary language in an insurance policy is a question of law for the appellate court to decide. 2. Contracts […]

557 A.2d 997 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. LARRY HALL No. 88-433Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford Decided May 3, 1989 1. Bail and Recognizance — Pretrial Detention — Hearing Under bail reform act, no matter when the district court establishes conditions for a defendant’s release, the State must move for a detention hearing […]

781 A.2d 976 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. STEVEN GORDON. No. 99-221Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough-Southern Judicial District Decided April 24, 2001 1. Criminal Law — Extradition — Doctrine of Specialty Doctrine of specialty is based on principles of international comity; it requires that persons who are surrendered by a government for prosecution […]

608 A.2d 870 OPINION OF THE JUSTICES (Solid Waste Disposal) No. 92-132Supreme Court of New Hampshire Request of the House of Representatives Decided May 6, 1992 1. Constitutional Law — New Hampshire Constitution — Mandated Programs Invoking constitutional prohibition against mandated programs requires both a mandate of responsibility to the political subdivision and a requirement […]

497 A.2d 1217 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. DALE R. WHITING No. 84-100Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton Decided August 15, 1985 Searches and Seizures — Reasonable Searches and Seizures — Particular Cases Trial court properly denied defendant’s motion to suppress seized evidence of a marijuana cigarette, where police officer called to the scene […]

127 A.2d 156 NORMAN E. LANGDON a. v. RUDOLPH A. SIBLEY. No. 4536.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Carroll.Argued November 8, 1956. Decided November 29, 1956. A motion to dismiss the plaintiffs’ bill in equity at the close of the plaintiffs’ case and before submission for decision on the merits properly raises the question of the […]

409 A.2d 1341 VALERIE MacNEIL v. DONALD MacNEIL No. 79-167Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack Decided December 28, 1979 1. Divorce — Custody and Support of Children — Visitation Rights In light of the medical and psychiatric histories in the record, the court, which provided defendant with summaries of reports filed with the court by […]

402 A.2d 166 RUSSELL KEENE a. v. TOWN OF MEREDITH No. 78-238Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided May 23, 1979 Zoning — Planning Authorities — Powers and Duties Town planning board had no jurisdiction to prevent sale of one of two lots owned by plaintiff by claiming that such sale would constitute a subdivision, […]

32 A.2d 526 EARLE C. MOFFATT, Ex’r v. ETTA S. GALE. No. 3388.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton. Decided May 4, 1943. The proper procedure for correction of an entry made by the trial court is by certiorari; but such remedy is discretionary and not to be granted if substantial justice can be attained by […]

281 A.2d 162 R. C. ALLEN BUSINESS MACHINES, INC. v. LYNN E. ACRES a d/b/a CONCORD TYPEWRITER SERVICE. HASKELL, INC. v. SAME. PURETEC, INC. v. SAME. Nos. 6145 6146 6147.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack Decided July 29, 1971. 1. Foreign corporations that have not registered and obtained a certificate of authority from the secretary […]

383 A.2d 705 NILES A. CLEVESY v. BARBARA A. CLEVESY No. 7798Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided March 10, 1978 1. Divorce — Alimony — Modification or Vacation Original decree of divorce, incorporating stipulation allocating certain property and establishing alimony payment schedule, was subject to three-year statute of limitation, and unless party seeking benefits […]

348 A.2d 345 STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. JAMES L. MILLER, JR. No. 7170Supreme Court of New Hampshire Durham District Court Decided November 28, 1975 1. Repeal of a statute by implication is not favored in this State and will not be found in the construction of statutes if any reasonable construction can avoid it. […]

131 A.2d 631 PHILIP H. McGRANAHAN d/b/a P. H. McGRANAHAN CO. v. STANDARD CONSTRUCTION CO., INC. No. 4562.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough.Argued February 6, 1957. Decided May 9, 1957. 1. In an action by a subcontractor to perfect a statutory mechanic’s lien (RSA ch. 447) the requirement (s. 8) that the owner of the […]

274 A.2d 795 WILLIAM E. ASHLEY v. RYE SCHOOL DISTRICT a. No. 6117.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham. Decided February 26, 1971. 1. The rehiring of a teacher aide by a school board with funds from an unencumbered surplus in instructional salaries that had been validly appropriated by the school district for school purposes was […]

213 A.2d 426 RICHARD STRITCH v. NAIDA STRITCH. No. 5325.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Carroll.Argued June 2, 1965. Submitted July 23, 1965. Decided October 5, 1965. 1. Jurisdiction in divorce proceedings is a continuing one with respect to all subsequent proceedings which arise out of the original cause of action. 2. Such jurisdiction includes the […]

43 A.2d 768 PAUL D. CASKEY, Ex’r v. STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. No. 3545.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton. Decided June 28, 1945. Since the right of a residuary legatee attaches only to the residue of the estate after the payment of all paramount claims, the tax imposed by R. L., c. 87 upon the […]

42 A.2d 222 SISTERS OF MERCY v. TOWN OF HOOKSETT. No. 3488.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack. Decided March 6, 1945. Mount Saint Mary College is a “seminary of learning” within the meaning of R. L., c. 73, s. 7, and the real estate used by it exclusively for school purposes is not taxable. The […]

662 A.2d 955 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. SHELDON CASSADY No. 94-758Supreme Court of New Hampshire Durham District Court Decided July 24, 1995 1. Judgments — Collateral Estoppel — Generally Application of doctrine of collateral estoppel is not constitutionally mandated when first proceeding is civil, rather than criminal. 2. Judgments — Collateral Estoppel — […]

121 A.2d 795 IRA H. WHITE, Ex’r v. CORINTHIAN LODGE a. No. 4453.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham.Argued February 7, 1956. Decided March 29, 1956. In the construction of a will, the conclusion of the Trial Court as to the intent of the testator based upon an agreed statement of facts and the will itself […]

595 A.2d 1089 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. THOMAS E. ALLISON No. 90-003Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided July 31, 1991 1. Depositions and Discovery — Purpose — Criminal Proceedings The purpose of a bill of particulars is to protect a defendant against a second prosecution for an inadequately described offense and to […]

681 A.2d 75 APPEAL OF KEVIN G. BARRY a. (Board of Trustees of the City of Manchester Employees’ Contributory Retirement System) No. 94-434Supreme Court of New Hampshire Manchester Retirement Board Decided July 11, 1996 1. Public Employees — Retirement System — Trustees of Retirement System Board of trustees of city employees’ retirement system did not […]

761 A.2d 407 EDITH L. TOMASKO v. VINCENT E. DUBUC No. 98-836Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough-Northern Judicial District Decided August 15, 2000 1. Divorce — Custody — Visitation In ruling on mother’s post-divorce petition to relocate with minor children, trial court correctly considered whether proposed modification would preclude children from participating in their normal […]

79 A.2d 19 MARY H. HARDIMAN, Adm’x v. WALSH BROTHERS. No. 3956.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Strafford. March 6, 1951. Where the duty of an employee in operating an elevator furnished by the master required no special skill for the maintenance of safety beyond that involved in doing the work such operator was a fellow […]

649 A.2d 53 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. MICHAEL EMANUEL No. 91-555Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided October 21, 1994 1. Attorneys — Withdrawal From Proceeding — Proper Withdrawals An attorney in a case that has been assigned for trial can withdraw from representation only if granted permission by the court upon a […]

749 A.2d 309 JOHN AND ANNETTE KUKENE v. JEANNE M. GENUALDO No. 97-085Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham Decided March 21, 2000 1. Costs — Recovery of Costs and Attorney Fees — Generally Attorney’s fees may be awarded where litigation is instituted or unnecessarily prolonged through a party’s oppressive, vexatious, arbitrary, capricious or bad faith […]

364 A.2d 878 ARLINGTON AMERICAN SAMPLE BOOK COMPANY v. BOARD OF TAXATION No. 7386Supreme Court of New Hampshire Board of Taxation Decided September 30, 1976 1. Relief from board of taxation’s dismissal of appeal for tax abatement under RSA 76:16-a (Supp. 1975) as not seasonably filed was barred by statutory six-month period of limitation, whether […]

121 A.2d 783 LOUIS C. WYMAN, Attorney General v. PAUL M. SWEEZY. No. 4395.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Merrimack.Argued January 3, 1956. Decided March 6, 1956. In a petition to the Superior Court by the Attorney General (RSA 491:19, 20) to compel a witness to answer questions he previously refused to answer in the course […]

331 A.2d 155 ROGER A. CARON v. WILLIAM LABRIE No. 6883Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough Decided January 31, 1975 1. After the supreme court was told that plaintiff’s counsel had been unable to locate his client and that neither counsel had any knowledge about the authenticity of a typewritten letter which had been received […]

236 A.2d 685 HELEN CORA BERNARD v. VALEDA E. BERNARD a. No. 5618.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough.Argued September 6, 1967. Decided December 29, 1967. 1. On a motion to dismiss a bill in equity the facts alleged in the petition are assumed to be true and will be construed most favorably to the plaintiff. […]

451 A.2d 1315 MARION CHASE a. v. ARLENE DODGE AVIGDOR No. 81-445Supreme Court of New Hampshire Belknap Decided October 14, 1982 1. Contracts — Construction — Rewriting Contract The courts generally have no authority to rewrite contracts into which the parties have freely entered. 2. Equity — Relief Available — Discretion of Court In equitable […]

727 A.2d 981 THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE v. MICHAEL ENO No. 95-615Supreme Court of New Hampshire Grafton Decided April 8, 1999 1. Appeal and Error — Questions Considered on Appeal —Constitutionality Before triggering State constitutional analysis, defendant must unambiguously and specifically assert State constitutional foundation for his objection. 2. Criminal Law — Victims — […]

547 A.2d 252 WEHRINGER’S CASE No. LD-86-005Supreme Court of New Hampshire Original Decided August 5, 1988 1. Constitutional Law — Right to Counsel — Waiver Respondent in disbarment proceeding effectively waived any claims with respect to a right to court-appointed counsel, since record did not show that respondent had ever requested that a lawyer be […]

400 A.2d 1169 JOHN A. KING v. MELDRIM THOMSON, JR. AND NEW HAMPSHIRE BOARD OF PROBATION No. 7796Supreme Court of New Hampshire Original Decided April 13, 1979 1. Public Employees — Suspension and Dismissal — State’s Interest Statute stating that State officials can only be removed from office when cause exists, while providing procedural safeguards […]

872 A.2d 1000 PETITION OF THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. No. 2004-320.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Rockingham.Argued: April 5, 2005. Opinion Issued: May 9, 2005. 1. Remedies — Extraordinary Writs — Certiorari Certiorari review is limited to whether the trial court acted illegally with respect to jurisdiction, authority, or observance of the law, whereby it […]

219 A.2d 708 NEW HAMPSHIRE YORK CO. v. TITUS CONSTRUCTION COMPANY a. No. 5466.Supreme Court of New Hampshire Hillsborough.Argued April 6, 1966. Decided May 31, 1966. 1. Summary judgment procedure is designed to save time, effort and expense by allowing a final judgment to be entered immediately in those cases where there is no genuine […]