Supreme Court of Vermont

The Court affirmed summary judgment for the Department of Corrections, rejecting Murphy’s procedural and substantive due process challenges and his Common Benefits Clause claim. It held that procedural due process does not apply to the Legislature’s general, prospective amendment of the earned-time statute, and that…

The Court affirmed the Public Utility Commission’s issuance of a certificate of public good for the proposed telecommunications tower. It held that the neighbors lacked standing to challenge the exclusion of municipal filings because they alleged no injury to their own interests, and it found no clear error in the…

The Court held that Chandler Quarry remained subject to Act 250 after years of expanded, coordinated commercial operations caused lasting impacts, notwithstanding its later reduction of activity and separation from the other quarries.

The Court reversed the Employment Security Board’s award of summer unemployment benefits because the statutory exclusion for unemployment between regular but not successive academic terms applied to the claimant’s spring-summer-fall work arrangement.

The Vermont Supreme Court denied defendant Tate Rheaume's motion for permission to take an interlocutory appeal from the trial court's order denying his motion in limine to admit evidence of the Rutland City Police Department's pursuit policy in his aggravated murder trial.

The Supreme Court of Vermont affirmed the trial court's judgment in favor of plaintiff Christopher Huber on his breach-of-contract claim against defendants Janet Currie, 57 Sanford Street LLC, and Valley Stock Farm LLC.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed a trial court order imposing $5000 cash bail or surety after finding the defendant posed a risk of flight, where within roughly three days he was twice charged with violating conditions of release and asked his estranged wife not to report one violation.

The Vermont Supreme Court denied an attorney's motion for automatic reinstatement from an interim suspension imposed after a nolo contendere plea to DUI, holding that the trial court's striking of the adjudication of guilt under the deferred-sentence statute, 13 V.S.A.

The Court affirmed judgment for Susan, holding that the mutual wills contract required the surviving parent to distribute all property owned at death equally among the three children, including assets received through joint tenancy.

The Court affirmed the denial of plaintiff’s motion for additur or a new trial, concluding that the jury’s $5,000 noneconomic-damages award was reasonably supported and did not show compromise or misguidance.

The Vermont Supreme Court reversed the trial court’s denial of the plaintiff’s motion to extend a relief‑from‑abuse (RFA) order, holding that probation conditions do not substitute for an RFA order because the two serve different purposes; the case was remanded for further proceedings consistent with that ruling.

The court affirmed judgment as a matter of law for defendants on plaintiff’s claims concerning her 2018 and 2019 bonuses, her alleged deprivation of a 2020 bonus and unused paid time off, and the individual defendant’s wage liability.

The Court reversed the order holding defendant without bail and remanded for a prompt hearing to impose conditions of release. It held that aggravated stalking, including the weapon-possession variant charged here, is not a felony whose elements involve an act of violence for purposes of the hold-without-bail statute…

The Court imposed immediate interim suspension on Vermont attorney Stephen Girdwood based on his interim suspension and admitted misconduct in New Hampshire. Because neither Girdwood nor Disciplinary Counsel showed that identical discipline would be unwarranted under the applicable Vermont rule, the Court imposed the…

The Court affirmed dismissal of the Human Rights Commission’s discrimination action after the defendant died, holding that the proposed substitutes were not shown to be proper parties under Rule 25.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the conviction of Dean A. Lovejoy for lewd or lascivious conduct with a child and rejected his motions for acquittal and for a lesser‑included‑offense instruction.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s grant of summary judgment, holding that the predecessors‑in‑interest clearly intended to dedicate the disputed right‑of‑way to public use and that the Town properly accepted that dedication.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s denial of Travis Smith’s Rule 35 motions, holding that Rule 35(a) cannot be used to challenge the constitutionality of his conviction and that the trial court acted within its discretion in denying a Rule 35(b) sentence‑reconsideration request.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s sentence, holding that the trial court properly deferred the plea agreement, correctly limited consideration of victim‑impact statements, and was not required to credit time served under a restrictive curfew.

The Vermont Supreme Court imposed a public reprimand on Jessica Wilson, adopting the identical discipline imposed by Connecticut because she failed to demonstrate any of the statutory grounds for deviating from reciprocal discipline.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the summary‑judgment ruling for Green Mountain Power, holding that Vermont law does not impose a duty on landowners toward child trespassers and therefore declines to adopt the Restatement (Second) of Torts attractive‑nuisance doctrine.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s denial of the defendant’s motion to suppress his evidentiary breath‑test results. The Court held that the statutory right to consult counsel under 23 V.S.A.

After conducting an independent de novo evidentiary hearing, the Court concluded that the State had not clearly and convincingly proved that no release conditions could reasonably prevent the risk of physical violence.

The Court affirmed all three Public Utility Commission orders concerning Apple Hill Solar’s requests to extend its standard-offer commissioning deadline. It concluded that the fifth extension request was moot by the time the PUC acted, the contract had expired under its statutory and contractual terms, and the PUC did…

The Supreme Court of Vermont affirmed the lower court, holding that the Town of Tunbridge has statutory authority to maintain and repair public trails that cross private land. The Court based its decision on the plain‑meaning of the statutory definition of “public right‑of‑way” and the common‑law easement principles…

The Vermont Supreme Court held that 15A V.S.A. § 3-403(a) allows service of adoption and termination petitions by publication when the petitioner shows due diligence cannot be made with other methods, and that “personally served” incorporates all forms of personal service defined in Rule 4(d)(1) as of the statute’s…

The Court affirmed the civil division’s dismissal of petitioners’ appeal and the family division’s denial of the petitions to terminate the father’s parental rights and permit a stepparent adoption.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s hold‑without‑bail order, holding that the court’s post‑appeal correction deleting the word “not” was a permissible clerical amendment under V.R.Cr.P. 36 and that the State met the “great” evidence standard required for a presumption against release.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s amendment of the divorce decree under Rule 60(a), holding that the correction of the retirement‑account valuation date was a permissible clerical amendment reflecting the court’s original intent.

The Vermont Supreme Court held that the family division has jurisdiction to adjudicate husband’s breach‑of‑premarital‑agreement claims, including attorney‑fees, household‑expenses, tax obligations, and the implied covenant of good faith, and therefore reversed and remanded the lower court’s decision.

The Vermont Supreme Court held that the trial court’s decision to allow the child victim to testify by video, without a proper preponderance‑of‑the‑evidence showing trauma caused by the defendant’s presence, violated the defendant’s Sixth Amendment confrontation right and that the error was not harmless.

The Court affirmed the Commission’s denial of a certificate of public good after concluding that Warner Solar and Battle Creek Solar constituted a single plant under the governing two-prong test.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's award of attorney's fees and costs to Ms. Knapp under the abusive‑litigation statute, holding that the court was not required to consider Mr.

The Supreme Court of Vermont affirmed the Public Utility Commission’s grant of a certificate of public good for a solar project. It held that the Commission properly gave due consideration to the applicable town-plan provisions, reasonably relied on stormwater-control measures and the environmental agency’s expertise…

The Vermont Supreme Court held that lewd or lascivious conduct with a child qualifies as a crime involving an act of violence for purposes of the constitutional bail exception, overruling State v. Madigan.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the Cannabis Control Board’s revocation of Holland Cannabis, LLC’s license and the associated stop‑sale order, holding that the Board acted within its statutory authority, complied with its own procedural rules, and did not violate Holland’s due‑process rights or the state…

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s judgment that the Bank of New York Mellon lacked standing to foreclose because it did not demonstrate a right to enforce the note at the time the complaint was filed. The Court declined to overrule or limit U.S. Bank Nat. Ass’n v.

The Supreme Court of Vermont affirmed the Environmental Division’s dismissal of Lindsey Waterhouse’s appeal because he lacked standing and the Division lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeal without the permit applicants present, and it also declined to review the lower court’s denial of LBPT’s motions because…

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed Damien Diaz’s conviction for assault and robbery, holding that the State presented sufficient evidence to support each element of the offense and that the jury’s verdict was not inconsistent with acquittals on separate deadly‑weapon charges.

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s denial of the defendant’s motion to suppress, holding that the officer had reasonable and articulable suspicion of impairment based on erratic driving, specifically the vehicle’s passenger‑side tires leaving the paved roadway twice.