Adverse Possession Eminent Domain Prescriptive Easement
February 24, 2020 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
In a rescript opinion issued this morning in Gentili v. Town of Sturbridge (pdf), the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) ruled that a municipality’s acquisition of a prescriptive easement over private property is not an eminent domain taking. In prior proceedings in Gentili, the Land Court ruled that the defendant town had acquired a prescriptive easement […]
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Registered Land
December 12, 2019 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
The Appeals Court’s decision yesterday in Johnson v. Christ Apostle Church, Mt. Bethel (pdf) is a useful reminder that the Land Court’s jurisdiction over cases affecting title to registered land is exclusive. Johnson involved a dispute between the plaintiff homeowner and a neighboring church over Johnson’s longstanding use of a driveway on the church’s property for […]
Land Use Zoning
September 23, 2019 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
In a noteworthy decision today, the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) reaffirmed that the exemption in the state’s Zoning Act, M.G.L. c. 40A, for uses deemed to be “for educational purposes,” is construed very broadly. That exemption, which appears in Section 3 of Chapter 40A and is known as the Dover Amendment, provides in relevant part […]
June 28, 2019 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
In its recent decision in RCA Development, Inc. v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Brockton (pdf), Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) considered whether a division of land into two lots accomplished solely by deeds describing the new lots, with no plan having been drawn or approved by the local planning board, is valid. Without hesitation the […]
Construction Real Estate
March 1, 2019 / March 1, 2019 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
In a decision of great importance to property owners, developers, architects, engineers, and contractors, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) this morning ruled that the state’s six-year statute of repose, M.G.L. c. 260, § 2B, applies to tort claims based on asbestos exposure and other diseases with long latency periods. The decision is Stearns v. […]
December 13, 2018 / December 14, 2018 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
The Massachusetts Appeals Court’s recent decision in McIntyre v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Braintree demonstrates the importance of subject matter jurisdiction in the context of administrative proceedings. The plaintiffs appealed the issuance of a building permit authorizing construction of a single-family house on an abutting lot. Though they knew immediately that the permit had issued, the […]
Zoning
May 23, 2018 / June 14, 2018 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
It’s about time! Not since the notable 1961 adverse possession case Kershaw v. Zecchini have real estate litigators had an important decision inspired by circus performers. In its recent decision in Murrow v. ESH Circus Arts, LLC, the Appeals Court answers a question that concurring Justice Peter J. Rubin notes “has vexed the judges of the trial court, who have reached different conclusions about […]
Restrictions
December 5, 2017 / December 6, 2017 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
In its decision today in Berger v. 2 Wyndcliff, LLC (pdf), the Massachusetts Appeals Court answered an important question about extending common-scheme real estate restrictions beyond the presumptive statutory limit of 30 years. As to restrictions imposed as part of a common scheme applicable to four or more contiguous lots, M.G.L. c. 184, § 27 states in relevant part that an […]
Mortgages
November 16, 2017 / March 2, 2018 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
In its decision yesterday in Wells Fargo Bank v. Comeau (pdf), the Massachusetts Appeals Court rejected the plaintiff mortgagee’s attempt to use the doctrine of equitable subrogation in a novel way: to impose on a surviving wife the obligation to pay a note signed by her late husband where the wife had not signed either the note or […]
Condominiums
October 23, 2017 by Donald R. Pinto, Jr. | Leave a Comment
It’s not unusual for condominium documents to set aside parts of the development’s common area for the exclusive use of particular units. This device allows the developer to offer a degree of privacy in decks, driveways, garages, attics, and similar spaces that are affiliated with, but outside of, a unit. But how exclusive is an exclusive use area? The Massachusetts Appeals Court answered this question in a recent decision. […]
