Maine Supreme Judicial Court Decisions 2013
Date: December 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 112
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs owned property near but not on Sebago Lake. Defendants owned shorefront property on the lake. Through their deeds, Plaintiffs acquired an easement consisting of a right-of-way over lot 40A, a strip of land…
Date: December 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 113
Justia Opinion Summary: After Father and Mother divorced, Mother maintained primary physical custody of the parties’ two daughters, and Father and Mother shared joint legal custody of the girls. Mother later filed a motion to modify the custody…
Date: December 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 114
Justia Opinion Summary: The Department of Environmental Protection granted DCP Midstream Partners, LP, a permit to construct a liquefied petroleum gas terminal near Searsport. Thanks But No Tank and several individuals (collectively TBNT)…
Date: December 19, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 110
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of two counts of aggravated trafficking of a schedule W drug within one thousand feet of a school and of twice violating the conditions of his release in a related case. The…
Date: December 19, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 111
Justia Opinion Summary: Shellie and Robert Symonds executed a lease agreement granting AT&T Mobility the right to use a portion of their property to build a wireless communication tower. The town planning board approved AT&T's application…
Date: December 17, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 109
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006, the district court awarded shared parental rights and responsibilities of the parties' children, with Mother having primary residence. In 2012, Father filed successive motions to enforce and to modify. After a…
Date: December 10, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 107
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court ordered Defendant to pay a civil penalty and attorney fees and to remove three unregistered, uninspected vehicles from his property after finding that he maintained an automobile graveyard on his…
Date: December 10, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 108
Justia Opinion Summary: Thirteen-year-old Timothy Bell suffered serious injuries when he skateboarded out of Randall and Rose Dawson's driveway and was struck by a moving vehicle on the roadway. Teresa Bell, on behalf of her son, filed an…
Date: December 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 105
Justia Opinion Summary: Berwick Iron & Metal Recycling, Inc. operated a metal and automobile recycling business under an existing conditional use permit. In 2010, Berwick Iron applied for a conditional use permit to install and operate a metal…
Date: December 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 106
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was indicted on charges of burglary and theft. Defendant filed a motion to suppress the evidence obtained pursuant to three search warrants for Defendant's house, garage, and car. The superior court granted the…
Date: December 3, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 104
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed an unsworn notice of claim with the superior court pursuant to the Maine Health Security Act (MHSA) alleging that Defendants were negligent in providing her medical care. The statute of limitations on…
Date: November 26, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 103
Justia Opinion Summary: William Cumming was appointed as conservator for John Jennings's estate. George and Janetta Jennings, John's brother and sister, signed a bond for the conservatorship. Cumming later conceded that he misappropriated funds…
Date: November 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 102
Justia Opinion Summary: The Superintendent of Insurance ordered Guarantee Trust Life Insurance Company (GTL) to pay a civil penalty of $150,000 after finding that GTL violated Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. 24-A, 1420-M(1), 1902, and 2412(1-A)(B), and…
Date: November 14, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 100
Justia Opinion Summary: This case involved three Enhanced 9-1-1 (E-9-1-1) calls regarding an altercation that resulted in three people being shot. MaineToday Media, Inc. sent a series of requests to inspect and copy the three transcripts to the…
Date: November 14, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 101
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2010, the district court issued a divorce judgment awarding Mother and Father shared parental rights and responsibilities of their child and granting Mother primary residence of the child. In 2011, Father filed a…
Date: November 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 97
Justia Opinion Summary: Parents' two young children were removed from their care and placed in the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services due to Parents' abuse and neglect. The day before a scheduled contested hearing on the…
Date: November 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 98
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of aggravated assault, criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, criminal restraint, and violation of a condition of release. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the…
Date: November 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 99
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed an action against the Roman Catholic Bishop of Portland, alleging, among other things, that the Diocese improperly concealed its knowledge of improper interactions with minors by Plaintiff's abuser. After…
Date: November 7, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 96
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of aggravated attempted murder, aggravated criminal mischief, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, eluding an officer, and theft by unauthorized taking or transfer.…
Date: November 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 93
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant leased a single-family dwelling to Tenants pursuant to a lease agreement in which Tenants were permitted to keep pets but would be responsible for any property damage or disturbance caused by their pets. Three…
Date: November 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 94
Justia Opinion Summary: Anne Sullivan-Thorne (Defendant) executed a mortgage on her house in favor of IndyMac Bank, FSB. Cambridge Mutual Fire Insurance Company filed an action against Defendant relating to damage done to the home. As part of…
Date: November 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 95
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant was the owner of lots in a subdivision. Appellant and others in the area used a right-of-way to access the lake for recreational purposes. Appellees, who owned lots adjacent to the right-of-way, later refused…
Date: October 31, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 89
Justia Opinion Summary: John Hardy leased part of land to Littlebrook Airport Development Co. (LADC). John Hardy died, leaving his wife Jean as the sole surviving owner of the leased property. In 2005, Jean sold the leased property to and…
Date: October 31, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 90
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury-waived trial, Appellant was convicted of aggravated criminal trespass and unlawful sexual contact. Appellant appealed his conviction, contending that, because he was motivated by his subconscious thoughts,…
Date: October 31, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 91
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of domestic violence assault. Defendant appealed, arguing that the State's closing argument contained comments that impermissibly drew attention to her decision not to testify…
Date: October 31, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 92
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, who was eighteen years old at the time, was badly injured in a single-vehicle accident. While she lay sedated at the hospital, a police trooper, without providing Miranda warnings, questioned Defendant about…
Date: October 29, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 88
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of three counts of murder and one count of arson. The trial court imposed three concurrent life sentences on the murder convictions and a consecutive fifteen-year sentence on…
Date: October 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 86
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of theft by misapplication of property and securities fraud. Defendant appealed, contending that the court's jury instructions impermissibly shifted the burden of proof onto…
Date: October 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 87
Justia Opinion Summary: Wells Fargo Bank filed a complaint for foreclosure against Kenneth and Shelley Burek, alleging that the Bureks had defaulted on a promissory note held by Wells Fargo, thus breaching a condition of a corresponding…
Date: October 15, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 85
Justia Opinion Summary: A.H. was born in 2010 with extreme medical needs. A.H. required hospitalization three times when she was in the care of her parents. Eventually, the Department of Health and Human Services placed the child in a foster…
Date: October 10, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 84
Justia Opinion Summary: Padraic Conroy and Heather Wicks owned real property as tenants in common. In 2010, Wicks filed a complaint seeking an equitable partition and sale of the house, with profits to be split equally between her and Conroy.…
Date: October 8, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 83
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of unlawful sexual contact and unlawful sexual touching. This was the third trial held after two mistrials in this case. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the trial…
Date: September 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 81
Justia Opinion Summary: After a hearing, Mother's rights to her two-year-old daughter were terminated. The district court found by clear and convincing evidence that Mother abandoned the child, that Mother was unwilling or unable to protect the…
Date: September 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 82
Justia Opinion Summary: Fourteen-year-old Kenneth's paternal aunt (Aunt) and her son filed joined petitions for the appointment of a conservator and guardian based on Kenneth's mother's (Mother) inability to create a tolerable living situation…
Date: September 17, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 80
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to unlawful trafficking in a scheduled drug. Defendant appealed, arguing that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence obtained from a warrantless administrative inspection…
Date: September 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 79
Justia Opinion Summary: Deutsche Bank filed a complaint for foreclosure against Wilk, 14 M.R.S. 6321, attaching documents, including a 2005 mortgage ($459,375) from Wilk in favor of the original lender’s nominee, MERS; a 2008 assignment from…
Date: September 10, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 78
Justia Opinion Summary: Since 2001, Callaghan has worked part-time at the South Portland Library. Edwards works for the Parks and Recreation Department about four hours per week. Both are subject to a personnel policy, which, following…
Date: August 20, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 76
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was a general construction company. In 2010, the Maine Department of Labor Bureau of Unemployment Compensation conducted a random audit of Plaintiff's business to verify that twenty-four individuals that worked…
Date: August 20, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 77
Justia Opinion Summary: This case involved two potential easements across oceanfront property that provided access to two beaches. Charles Parsons once owned all of the property involved. In 1915, a plan divided the property into lots and…
Date: August 13, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 75
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael filed a complaint for divorce from Laurel. The district court dissolved Michael's marriage to Laurel and ordered Michael to (1) maintain health insurance for Laurel as an element of spousal support, and (2) be…
Date: August 6, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 74
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of murder and sentenced to a term of thirty-eight years incarceration. Defendant subsequently filed two motions for a new trial, both of which were denied. Defendant appealed,…
Date: August 1, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 72
Justia Opinion Summary: The City Council authorized the City Manager to sell a parcel of oceanfront property known as "the Boat School." Plaintiffs filed a complaint seeking a declaratory judgment that the sale agreement was invalid due to the…
Date: August 1, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 73
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to aggravated operating after habitual offender revocation, operating after habitual offender revocation, and criminal OUI. Defendant appealed, arguing, inter alia, that the…
Date: July 30, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 69
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted for multiple offenses of unlawful sexual contact, unlawful sexual touching, and assault. On appeal, Defendant challenged, inter alia, the trial court's denial of his motion to…
Date: July 30, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 70
Justia Opinion Summary: Less than eighteen months after the district court entered a judgment granting Husband and Wife a divorce, Husband moved to terminate spousal support payments. Wife did not file a response or opposition to the motion but…
Date: July 30, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 71
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to the intentional or knowing murder of his wife. The sentencing court imposed a final sentence of forty years in prison. Defendant appealed his sentence. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1)…
Date: July 16, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 67
Justia Opinion Summary: After Husband and Wife separated, they stipulated to shared parental rights and responsibilities for their two children. The district court later entered a divorce judgment determining marital property, marital debt, and…
Date: July 16, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 68
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff maintained a homeowners insurance policy with Insurer that excluded from coverage any claims for "injury arising out of the business pursuits" of Plaintiff. In 2011, a third party filed a complaint against…
Date: July 11, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 66
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury-waived trial, Defendant was convicted of operating under the influence of intoxicants (OUI) with one previous OUI conviction within a ten-year period. Defendant appealed, contending that the court erred in…
Date: July 9, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 65
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, FIA Card Services, filed a complaint against Defendant to recover damages for Defendant's unpaid credit card account. The district court subsequently entered summary judgment in favor of Plaintiff. The Supreme…
Date: July 2, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 62
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was the administratrix of a Massachusetts estate appointed by a Massachusetts court. Part of the estate was a parcel of real property located in Maine that was later sold. The estate and the IRS agreed to value…
Date: July 2, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 63
Justia Opinion Summary: The Maine Labor Relations Board determined that firefighters for the City of Augusta who retired after the expiration of a collective bargaining agreement between the City and the firefighters union were entitled to…
Date: July 2, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 64
Justia Opinion Summary: Child was placed with her maternal grandaunt (Grandaunt) after child was removed from her mother's custody. The district court subsequently terminated Parents' parental rights to Child. Child was kept with Grandaunt…
Date: June 25, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 61
Justia Opinion Summary: Paul Dyer held licenses as an insurance producer and consultant. Because of Dyer's alleged misconduct, the Bureau of Insurance filed a petition for enforcement against Dyer alleging that Dyer violated the Maine Insurance…
Date: June 20, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 59
Date: June 18, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 58
Justia Opinion Summary: The day after J.R. was born, he entered the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services due to his parents' violent relationship, their substance abuse, and J.R.'s display of symptoms of drug withdrawals.…
Date: June 11, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 57
Justia Opinion Summary: Two minor children were removed from Mother's home based on allegations of domestic violence and substance abuse. After a trial, the trial court terminated both Mother's and Father's parental rights, finding three bases…
Date: June 6, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 56
Justia Opinion Summary: Wife filed a complaint for divorce from Husband in 2010. Upon the filing of the divorce complaint, an injunction automatically issued barring either party from transferring marital property without the written consent of…
Date: June 4, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 54
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon. Applying the minimum mandatory sentencing provision of Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. 17-A, 1252(5), apparently on its own initiative, the…
Date: June 4, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 55
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs purchased property from Charles Johnson. During the pendency of the sale of the property, Johnson misrepresented the condition of the property and failed to disclose its prior use as a junkyard. Plaintiffs…
Date: May 30, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 52
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff entered into a commission agreement with Company in 2002 in which Company agreed to pay Plaintiff a commission when Company sold its products to contacts that Plaintiff introduced to Company. Starting in 2004,…
Date: May 30, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 53
Justia Opinion Summary: The Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices subpoenaed documents and testimony from the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) seeking the names of donors to NOM in order to determine whether NOM had…
Date: May 23, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 49
Justia Opinion Summary: After Father tested positive three times for marijuana use in violation of conditions of probation, the Department of Health and Human Resources removed Father's son, T.B., from Father's care. Father was incarcerated for…
Date: May 23, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 50
Justia Opinion Summary: Bernard Quirion, a Canadian citizen, was driving in Quebec when some plywood came off the truck Bryan Veilleux was driving and struck the windshield of Quirion's truck. Quirion sustained serious injuries. Veilleux was…
Date: May 23, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 51
Justia Opinion Summary: Ralph Nader, a candidate in the 2004 election, filed a civil complaint along with four of his presidential electors (collectively, Nader) in 2009 against the Maine Democratic Party and several other entities and…
Date: May 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 48
Justia Opinion Summary: Eagle Rental was a licensed used car dealer. Daniel Bickford and his wife were the company's vice president and treasurer. In 2003, Eagle Rental began purchasing Cadillac Escalades and trading them in to dealers for…
Date: May 16, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 47
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff and Defendant were divorced in 2005. In 2008, the parties stipulated to a modification of the divorce judgment. The modified divorce judgment required Defendant to pay Plaintiff weekly spousal and child support…
Date: May 9, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 46
Justia Opinion Summary: The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (Department) filed a petition to terminate the parental rights of the Mother and Father of two minor children. After a termination hearing, the district court found the…
Date: May 7, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 43
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to four counts of unlawful sexual contact. The Supreme Court vacated the sentences imposed on Defendant. On remand and after a hearing, the superior court imposed consecutive sentences on each of…
Date: May 7, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 44
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to operating under the influence. Defendant moved to suppress all evidence obtained from the stop of his vehicle for lack of reasonable articulable suspicion. The trial court agreed that the…
Date: May 7, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 45
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury-waived trial, Defendant was convicted of assault and refusing to submit to arrest. Defendant appealed, arguing that the trial court erred in determining that he was competent to stand trial. The Supreme…
Date: April 11, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 42
Justia Opinion Summary: Following a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of one count of arson. The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of conviction, holding (1) the indictment and jury verdict did not deprive Defendant of his constitutional…
Date: April 4, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 41
Justia Opinion Summary: After Stepmother and Father separated, Father's son, Stepmother's stepson (Stepson) continued to live with Stepmother. Stepmother subsequently filed a protection from abuse complaint against Father on behalf of herself,…
Date: April 2, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 39
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants installed video surveillance cameras at the entrance to an easement crossing their property. Members of a subdivision who benefitted from the easement (Plaintiffs) filed an action for a declaratory judgment…
Date: April 2, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 40
Justia Opinion Summary: The Department of Health and Human Services filed a child protection petition against D.P.'s parents, alleging that the parents placed D.P. in jeopardy. Mother filed a petition to terminate her own parental rights…
Date: March 28, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 38
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of burglary and theft by unauthorized taking or transfer for taking building materials worth more than $1,000. Defendant's adult son had told the police that he helped…
Date: March 27, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 37
Justia Opinion Summary: While working at Devereux Marine, Employee was electrocuted when the mast he was lowering came into contact with an overhead high-voltage power line owned by Central Maine Power Company (CMP). Employee received workers'…
Date: March 26, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 36
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant operated a returnable bottle redemption center. Defendant was convicted of theft by deception for turning over empty beverage containers that were not from beverages purchased in Maine and accepting deposit…
Date: March 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 31
Justia Opinion Summary: D.S., who had several disabilities and disorders, was admitted to the Spurwink School for the provision of "necessary emotional, psychological and other therapeutic services and education." In 2004, D.S., then sixteen…
Date: March 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 32
Justia Opinion Summary: Employee suffered an injury to his left hand while working for Employer. Later, Employee's left index finger had to be amputated. Employee subsequently filed a petition for specific loss benefits. The parties agreed…
Date: March 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 33
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was employed by a Hospital for nineteen years. In 2009, Plaintiff was deposed in connection with a wrongful death lawsuit against the Hospital. The day after Plaintiff signed her deposition transcript, the…
Date: March 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 34
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007, Petitioner pleaded guilty to ten counts of burglary. Because of a pending federal sentence, Petitioner was classified as a medium security inmate by the Department of Corrections (DOC). In 2011, Petitioner filed…
Date: March 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 35
Justia Opinion Summary: At issue in this case was Town Landing Road, which was bordered to the west by property owned by the Bayberry Cove Childrens' Land Trust (Trust) and bordered to the east by property owned by Paul and Pauline West. After…
Date: March 14, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 30
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of seven counts of unlawful sexual contact (Class C) and three counts of unlawful sexual contact (Class B). Defendant appealed, arguing that the trial court erred in denying…
Date: March 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 28
Justia Opinion Summary: Decedent, an employee of the Salvation Army, died at his home, part of which served as his office. Decedent's spouse filed a petition for death benefits with the Workers' Compensation Board (Board), which issued an award…
Date: March 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 29
Justia Opinion Summary: Decedent died testate, devising her estate in equal shares to her two surviving children, Daughter and Son. Daughter paid the estate's bills with her personal funds for several years. In April 2010, Daughter filed…
Date: March 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 24
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs were sex offenders who were all initially required to register as sex offenders under Maine's Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) of 1999. Some Plaintiffs were later relieved of the…
Date: March 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 25
Justia Opinion Summary: The Department of Environmental Protection approved an application of Saddleback Ridge Wind, LLC for a permit to construct the Saddleback Ridge Wind Project, a wind energy development. The Board of Environmental…
Date: March 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 26
Justia Opinion Summary: The Scarborough Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) granted a setback variance to property owners in the Higgins Beach neighborhood of Scarborough. The property abutted land owned by Summerwind Cottage, LLC. Peter and Libby…
Date: March 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 27
Justia Opinion Summary: The Town of Madawaska foreclosed on Jeffrey and Jeanne Stoops' property after the Stoops failed to pay municipal taxes. The Town then conveyed the property to Richard and Betty Nelson by municipal quitclaim deed. The…
Date: February 28, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 23
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Nadeau, an employee with the Bureau of Insurance, married a manager of a Bureau-regulated entity. The Bureau subsequently discharged Nadeau on the basis that his continued employment at the Bureau while married…
Date: February 21, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 22
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff began working for Defendant as a salesperson in 2005. Defendant resigned from his employment in 2010 and signed a separation agreement before his departure. Defendant initially paid Plaintiff pursuant to the…
Date: February 15, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 21
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was charged by a fifty-nine-count indictment that included forty-five counts of violation of privacy and one count of conspiracy to commit violation of privacy. Defendant subsequently filed a motion to dismiss…
Date: February 14, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 20
Justia Opinion Summary: This was the second appeal of a matter involving six subdivision lot owners and their attempt to form a road association. In the first appeal, the Supreme Court held that the lot owners were authorized by statute to…
Date: February 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 18
Justia Opinion Summary: The Department of Health and Human Services filed petitions seeking the appointment of a public guardian and conservator for Helen F. After a hearing, the county probate court adjudicated Helen to be incapacitated and…
Date: February 12, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 19
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an owner of a condominium unit, filed a complaint, individually and derivatively on behalf of the condominium association (Association), against the Association and four members of its board of directors…
Date: February 7, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 17
Justia Opinion Summary: Bank brought an action against Defendant for foreclosure on a residential mortgage. In this case, Bank was a holder entitled to enforce the mortgage note and currently had possession of the note, which was endorsed in…
Date: February 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 15
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2010, Hebron Academy requested a tax abatement from the Town for the 2009 tax year. Because the Academy did not file the abatement request before the statutory deadline, the Town denied the request. The Board of…
Date: February 5, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 16
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant and two co-conspirators pleaded no contest or guilty to various charges. Defendant pleaded guilty to two counts of intentional or knowing murder. The sentencing court sentenced Defendant to two concurrent terms…
Date: January 29, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 13
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal resulted from a high-speed chase involving Patrick Smith, who was driving a motorcycle, and Andrew Feeney, a Cumberland County Sheriff's Deputy. After Feeney observed Smith's motorcycle traveling above the…
Date: January 29, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 14
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed an action in the U.S. district court against a Maine police officer, alleging that the officer used force in arresting Plaintiff in violation of state and federal law. A jury found the officer liable on…
Date: January 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 11
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2008, the Public Utilities Commission approved a merger between FairPoint Communications-NNE (FairPoint) and Verizon Maine (Verizon). The merger order committed FairPoint to expanding DSL availability in Maine to…
Date: January 24, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 12
Justia Opinion Summary: After the State brought a criminal proceeding against Mark Strong, the court initiated jury selection through a process that had the practical effect of excluding the public, including the media, from voir dire. After…
Date: January 17, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 10
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of intentional or knowing murder for killing a sixteen-year-old girl, who was found buried with her wrists bound in duct tape, behind Defendant's mother's home. Defendant…
Date: January 17, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 9
Justia Opinion Summary: During her employment with Employer, Appellant applied to open a registered medical marijuana dispensary. Appellant was later terminated from her employment. Appellant filed a complaint against Employer, alleging in…
Date: January 15, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 8
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff purchased title insurance for a condominium unit she had recently purchased. Plaintiff's neighbor subsequently initiated a lawsuit against Plaintiff alleging that Plaintiff's property was subject to a view…
Date: January 10, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 6
Justia Opinion Summary: Prime Motor Cars sold Seacoast RV, Inc. a car. The car had modifications that voided the manufacturer's warranty and caused mechanical problems that may not have been apparent when the car was sold because the "check…
Date: January 10, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 7
Justia Opinion Summary: The Superintendent of Insurance found that a Bankers Life and Casualty Company agent engaged in deceptive insurance sales practices in multiple transactions with an elderly woman. Bankers Life and its agents functioned…
Date: January 8, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 3
Justia Opinion Summary: First Franklin Financial Corporation and Jason Gardner attended foreclosure mediation. The parties disputed the outcome of the mediation. Gardner argued that the parties reached a binding agreement requiring First…
Date: January 8, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 4
Justia Opinion Summary: Dale and Diane Charette's divorce incorporated a settlement agreement in which the parties agreed that Dale would pay Diane $200 per week as general spousal support. The district court later reduced Dale's spousal…
Date: January 8, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 5
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of theft by unauthorized taking or transfer and criminal mischief. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the jury rationally could have found every element of the offenses…
Date: January 3, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 1
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff and Defended were divorced pursuant to a judgment that required Defendant to transfer paperwork to Plaintiff, assure that Plaintiff's tractor and snow blower were in working condition, and make property…
Date: January 3, 2013
Citation: 2013 ME 2
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted for the intentional or knowing murder of his roommate. Defendant appealed, arguing that the trial court erred in concluding that he waived his Fifth Amendment privilege against…
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