Karl Olsen v. Anna L. DeMayo

Citations

• 210 A.3d 431

Syllabus

The appellant, Karl Olsen, appealed from a February 6, 2018 Newport Superior Court judgment granting the motion for summary judgment of the appellee, Anna L. DeMayo, and denying Mr. Olsen's cross-motion for summary judgment. On appeal, Mr. Olsen contended that the Superior Court justice erred in granting Mrs. DeMayo's motion for summary judgment and denying his cross-motion for summary judgment in view of his arguments: (1) that G.L. 1956 § 34-18-22.3 provided him the right to recover all the rent which he had paid to Mrs. DeMayo over several years because she, as a landlord who was not a resident of this state, had failed to designate an agent for service of process as required by the statute (2) that he had a right to recover the rent under G.L. 1956 § 9-1-2, which provides \civil liability for crimes and offenses\ and (3) that he had a right to recover the rent under the theory of unjust enrichment. The Supreme Court held that the hearing justice properly granted Mrs. DeMayo's motion for summary judgment as to all three issues. The Court concluded: (1) that Mr. Olsen's proffered interpretation of § 34-18-22.3 ran afoul of the canon of statutory construction that counsels against interpreting an ambiguous statute in a manner that yields an absurd result (2) that he had not met his burden of showing that he had suffered any damages as required by § 9-1-2 and (3) that he had not shown that it was inequitable for Mrs. DeMayo to have received and retained rent payments from him while, for nearly ten years, he and his family occupied a waterfront condominium owned by her. Accordingly, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the Superior Court.