On November 21, 2014, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives filed a lawsuit against the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Treasury and both Departments' Secretaries, in their official capacity. The lawsuit alleges that the...
PLDO Law Blog
Pannone Lopes Devereaux OGara LLC
Navigating Equity Financing for Privately Held Companies
It is a rare company indeed that is able to start a business and grow it to a profitable enterprise solely on the basis of cash generated from operations. The vast majority of companies require some form of outside financing. That leaves two alternatives: (i) the...
Protect Your Personal and Business Digital Assets: New Law Aims to Help
When your life flashes before your eyes moments before you die, you likely won't be thinking about your tweet count, your Farmville assets, your Bitcoins, your iTunes play-lists, or how many "likes" your last status update received. However, a new law is aimed at...
“Fixing Veterans Health Care”
While we pay respect and gratitude to our nation's veterans we are also reminded that many veterans are not receiving the timely and quality health care that they deserve. "Concerned Veterans for America" is an organization that is attacking this issue by convening...
REAL ESTATE TITLE DISPUTES: THE PROCESS OF RECORDING “LIS PENDENS” IN RHODE ISLAND AND MASSACHUSETTS
If you or your business ends up in a dispute over real estate, it is likely that you will encounter a lis pendens. Lis pendens is Latin for “suit pending,” and it means just that, it is a statutorily governed legal tool that is often used to give notice on a...
HIGH STAKES: DRAFTING AND INTERPRETING PAYMENT REJECTIONS UNDER MASSACHUSETTS’ PROMPT PAY ACT
Under the Massachusetts Prompt Pay Act, which governs construction contracts, unless an owner meets the Act's "time and substance" requirements for rejecting a payment application from a contractor (ditto for subcontractors' applications to contractors), that...
RHODE ISLAND SUPREME COURT RULES THAT A PROPERTY’S FORECLOSURE WAS VALID DESPITE PLAINTIFF’S CLAIMS THAT MORTGAGE DOCUMENTS WERE “AMBIGUOUS”
BackgroundA recent case arose out of foreclosure proceedings that were instituted by Wells Fargo Bank (“Wells Fargo” or “defendant”) with respect to property located at 18 High Street in Bristol, Rhode Island. The property’s owner (“plaintiff”) secured the mortgage by...
FDA CONSIDERS RESCHEDULING MARIJUANA: A MILESTONE IN DRUG POLICY REFORM
The landscape of drug policy in the United States is poised for a significant shift as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) undertakes a reassessment of marijuana’s drug scheduling classification. The FDA is conducting a comprehensive review of marijuana’s current...
ARE NON-COMPETITION AGREEMENTS ENFORCEABLE IN RHODE ISLAND?
COURTS RULE IN FAVOR OF THE EMPLOYER’S AGREEMENT IN RECENT CASE The Rhode Island Supreme Court recently addressed the enforceability of a non-competition provision. In Walls v. Griggs & Browne Pest Control, Inc., the Court reviewed an agreement between Brian Walls...
