J.R.P. Associates v. Bess Eaton Donut Flour Co., Inc.
| Decision Date | 27 November 1996 |
| Docket Number | No. 95-272-A,95-272-A |
| Citation | 685 A.2d 285 |
| Parties | J.R.P. ASSOCIATES, a Rhode Island Partnership v. BESS EATON DONUT FLOUR COMPANY, INC. ppeal. |
| Court | Rhode Island Supreme Court |
Melissa M. Horne, Providence.
Allen P. Rubine, Providence.
This case came before a panel of the Supreme Court for oral argument on November 19, 1996, pursuant to an order that directed the plaintiff, J.R.P. Associates, a Rhode Island Partnership, and the defendant, Bess Eaton Donut Flour Company, Inc., to show cause why this appeal should not be summarily decided. The plaintiff has appealed the Superior Court's granting of the defendant's motion for summary judgment.
After hearing the arguments of counsel and reviewing the memoranda filed by counsel for the parties, this Court concludes that cause has not been shown, and the case will be decided at this time.
The plaintiff, who was the lessor, and defendant, who was the lessee, had signed a lease agreement that expired on December 31, 1991. Subsequent to that date, defendant continued to occupy plaintiff's premises without exercising an option to renew the lease. Instead, defendant thereafter reduced its rental payments to plaintiff from $1,666.00 per month to $833.33 per month, and plaintiff accepted the reduced amounts. On December 31, 1993, after two years of what the parties agree was a month-to-month tenancy, defendant vacated the premises.
In January 1994, plaintiff filed a complaint against defendant seeking $20,353.76 in unpaid rents, sewer charges and water charges for the period of January 1, 1992, through December 31, 1993. The plaintiff moved for summary judgment, arguing that the lease clearly and unambiguously required defendant to continue paying the full monthly rent of $1,666.00 during the month-to-month tenancy. In particular, plaintiff cited a provision of the contract that stated:
"Should the Tenant continue to occupy the premises after the expiration of the term hereof, or of any renewal or extension thereof, the Tenant shall, in the absence of a written agreement between the parties to the contrary, be deemed a tenant from month-to-month upon all the terms and conditions of this Lease which are not inconsistent with such tenancy."
The plaintiff also pointed out that the contract specifically provided that plaintiff, by accepting a reduced rent, would not waive the right to collect the balance due.
The defendant also moved for summary judgment and argued that the lease expired on December 31, 1991, but was thereafter modified by the parties. In deposition testimony, defendant's president testified that plaintiff orally agreed to extend the lease at the reduced rent of $833.33 per month to accommodate defendant's decreased profits. On September 29, 1992, nine months after the original lease expired, defendant mailed a letter to plaintiff offering to renew the lease for...
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Kiley v. Patterson
...judgment as a matter of law, will this Court uphold the trial justice's order granting summary judgment." J.R.P. Associates v. Bess Eaton Donut Flour Co., 685 A.2d 285, 286 (R.I.1996) (citing Accent Store Design, Inc. v. Marathon House, Inc., 674 A.2d 1223, 1225 (R.I.1996)). Furthermore, "a......
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Heflin v. Koszela
...matter of law, will this Court uphold the trial justice's order granting summary judgment." Id. (quoting J.R.P. Associates v. Bess Eaton Donut Flour Co., 685 A.2d 285, 286 (R.I.1996)). "Although the moving party bears the initial burden of establishing that no genuine issue of material fact......
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DeLaire v. Kaskel
...of material fact are revealed, and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Id.; J.R.P. Associates v. Bess Eaton Donut Flour Co., 685 A.2d 285, 286 (R.I.1996) In the current case, we are asked to determine whether an animal-control officer falls within the public safety ......
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St. Angelo Motors, Inc. v. County Development Associates, LLC, C.A. No. 99-0242 (R.I. Super 4/5/2004)
...is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Kiley v. Patterson, 763 A.2d 583, 585 (R.I. 2000) (quoting J.R.P. Associates v. Bess Eaton Donut Flour Co., 685 A.2d 285, 286 (R.I. 1996)); Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. Rule 56(c). When a trial justice is ruling on a motion for summary judgment, the onl......