Rhode Island

Brothers had Rhode Island practice for 18 years despite never passing state bar

A Massachusetts lawyer failed the Rhode Island bar exam eight times, while his lawyer brother never took the state’s bar exam at all, yet they maintained a law office in the state for 18 years, according to court records and a committee report forwarded to Rhode Island’s attorney general. Samuel…

Jul 23, 2015 8:26 AM CDT

Ruling gets lawyer a 1-year suspension for misconduct

Lawyer Keven A. McKenna has been suspended from the practice of law for one year. The Rhode Island Supreme Court, in a ruling Friday, found that McKenna had, among other things, deliberately tried to disrupt and delay a Workers’ Compensation Court proceeding, failed to disclose income to a U.S. Bankruptcy…

Mar 2, 2015 1:20 PM CST

Court orders removal of $1.8M home mistakenly built on park land

A developer who relied on a faulty land survey will have to move the $1.8 million home he built on park land on Rhode Island’s coast, the state supreme court has ruled. The court ruled (PDF) against developer Robert Lamoureux and the corporation he owns, the Four Twenty Corp., report…

Jun 18, 2014 4:58 PM CDT

9 charged after murder arraignment erupts into courthouse melee and chase

A seemingly innocuous remark at a murder case arraignment Tuesday afternoon erupted into a war of words between two families, brawling, a court panic alarm and a foot chase as individuals involved ran from a Providence, Rhode Island, courthouse with city and state police and sheriff’s officers in hot pursuit.…

May 21, 2014 6:30 PM CDT

Landmark DOJ settlement with RI provides road map to disability-law compliance for 49 other states

A landmark settlement with Rhode Island over placement of disabled individuals in low-wage, segregated settings will provide a road map for compliance in 49 other states, the Department of Justice announced Tuesday. The consent decree will give the state 10 years to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act by…

Apr 8, 2014 7:35 PM CDT

Lawyer who tossed bean bags during closing won’t be held in contempt

A criminal defense lawyer who tossed bean bags during closing arguments while comparing the state’s case to excrement will not be held in contempt. Judge William Carnes Jr. of Providence, R.I., said he would not hold lawyer Christopher Millea in contempt, but emphasized the importance of maintaining courtroom decorum, the…

Feb 25, 2014 1:12 PM CST

Insurer had duty to defend ‘Heavy Hitter’ law firm in deceptive advertising case, federal judge says

A malpractice exclusion in a law firm’s director’s and officer’s liability insurance policy did not excuse the carrier from providing a defense in a lawsuit against the firm over its alleged deceptive advertising, a federal judge has ruled. Finding that the exclusion, as interpreted by the insurer, would largely eliminate…

Feb 18, 2014 6:45 PM CST

Former law student in police standoff after law school said he sent threatening email

A former law student at Roger Williams University was being evaluated Tuesday night following an incident in which he allegedly sent threatening email to faculty and administrators at the university’s law school and then refused to leave his home. Kevin Pacheco, 36, emerged from his Dartmouth, Mass., home Tuesday night…

Feb 6, 2014 1:00 PM CST

Pierce Atwood to acquire 10-attorney Rhode Island firm

A well-known New England law firm has announced plans to acquire a 10-attorney Providence, R.I.-based commercial and construction litigation boutique. Little Bulman Medeiros & Whitney will become part of Maine-based Pierce Atwood on Dec. 9, according to the Bangor Daily News and Mainebiz. Together, the merged firms will have an…

Nov 8, 2013 9:00 PM CST

Attorney who ‘blindly followed instructions’ censured for helping Internet scammer

Updated: A Rhode Island lawyer who marketed himself as an “attorney pay master” has been censured for helping a client transfer funds to offshore accounts before discovering the client was an Internet scammer. Johnston, R.I., lawyer Donald DeCiccio cooperated with authorities after learning in October 2012 that the client was…

Oct 23, 2013 1:09 PM CDT

Attorney faces disciplinary case over driver’s license application

After her driving privileges were suspended in Rhode Island, due to a drunken-driving arrest, Layne Savage obtained a license in Massachusetts. Now the Rhode Island attorney is facing a legal ethics case. She is accused not only of commiting a criminal act that reflects adversely on a lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness…

Sep 16, 2013 4:00 PM CDT

Veteran defense lawyer convicted in conspiracy to bribe witness not to testify against client

A veteran Rhode Island defense lawyer has been convicted in a claimed conspiracy to bribe a witness not to testify in a criminal case. After 13 hours of deliberation, a Providence jury found Gerard Donley guilty on Thursday of bribery, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. He testified that money he…

Jun 14, 2013 2:15 PM CDT

Federal judge jails estate lawyer as flight risk, nixes ‘bizarre’ effort to revoke plea

A Rhode Island estate planning lawyer’s effort to revoke his guilty plea in a controversial $30 million elder insurance fraud case was a “bizarre” and unjustified “hatchet job” on Joseph Caramadre’s former counsel, a federal judge said Monday. U.S. District Judge William Smith not only nixed Caramadre’s bid for a…

May 21, 2013 11:09 AM CDT

Estate lawyer asks to revoke plea, now wants trial in $30M elder insurance fraud case

A Rhode Island estate planning lawyer is seeking to revoke the plea agreement he made last year near the outset of what was expected to be a lengthy trial in a controversial $30 million fraud case. Supporters said attorney Joseph Caramadre did nothing wrong by using the identities of elderly…

Jan 14, 2013 7:51 PM CST

Lawyer Accused of Misusing IDs of Terminally Ill in $30M Investment Scheme Takes Plea

As testimony was about to resume Monday in a federal trial that had been expected to continue for months, a Rhode Island estate planning lawyer and a former employee accused of misusing the identities of dying individuals in a $30 million investment scheme both took a plea. Attorney Joseph Caramadre,…

Nov 19, 2012 6:30 PM CST