Lawsuit By Resource Recovery Heard In Court

Superior Court Judge Michael Silverstein heard arguments from both sides today in a lawsuit alleging that the Corporation lost $20 million on questionable land deals through a conspiracy with landowners, appraisers, insurers and a Woonsocket-based real estate agent.

Among the defendants are family members of the late former Mayor William Macera, including his cousin, Gerald; Woonsocket City Council candidate Albert Brien, of real estate firm , and 22 other names parties.

According to the suit, which alleges conspiracy, fraud, misrepresentation and malpractice, Brien collected more than $440,000 in commissions on six land deals while representing various sellers.

The Superior Court lawsuit states that Brien, along with Christopher J. Montalbano of Pilgrim Title Insurance Co., the Macera family, and an appraiser, William E. Coyle Jr. and Associates of Pawtucket, "collectively agreed to divest RIRRC of money with a property purchase for a sum far exceeding fair market value as well as to manipulate the appraisal process in order to create a false and misleading depiction of market value.''

In the largest land sale, Brien acted as the real estate broker for Gerald Macera, former Johnston mayor William Macera's cousin, in the year 2000. The sale resulted in the purchase of the former Macera Dump by RIRRC for $6 million, despite environmental concerns which, according to the suit, were left off of the purchase and sales agreement.

The lawsuit also states that a clause which would have made the Macera family responsible for capping an 8.5-acre area — where the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management had identified elevated levels of contaminants in the ground water — was also "deliberately and without explanation" missing from the final agreement. The tax-assessed value for 33 of the 36 acres of land in the purchase was $1.4 million. 

"RIRRC justifiably relied upon these false representations in purchasing the property," the suit continues. "These false representations constitute a breach of duty to RIRRC. As a direct and proximate result of Coyle, Brien, Pilgrim, and Macera/Tower’s negligent omissions and misrepresentations, RIRRC has suffered and will continue to suffer substantial injuries."

In Count IV of the suit, Brien, Coyle, Pilgrim and Macera/Tower are accused of negligent omissions and misrepresentation.

"As a licensed real estate agent and broker, Brien had a duty to disclose to potential buyers any material defects within the Brien’s personal knowledge, and that the Brien knew or should have known that the buyer was acting under a misapprehension concerning facts which would have been important to the buyer," it states. "The sale price of the above described property being far in excess of fair market value constituted a material defect in the property that if known to RIRRC would have been important to it. Brien breached his duty to disclose material defects to RIRRC on the above described property for which Brien acted as Seller’s broker."

During the "motion to stay discovery" hearing, both sides presented the outlines of the case; Silverstein is expected to hear a motion to dismiss the case in January.