Manuel Andrews, Jr. v. James Lombardi, in his capacity as Treasurer of the City of Providence, Rhode Island

Syllabus

In 2012, the defendant City of Providence passed an ordinance suspending the annual cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) to the pension benefits for retired members of the Providence police and fire departments (the 2012 Pension Ordinance) the suspension would be in place until the then-underfunded pension fund achieved a 70 percent funding level. The City's consultants projected that the pension fund could reach a 70 percent funding level in 2036. Retiree groups and union groups initiated litigation to bar enforcement of the new ordinance. After engaging in court-ordered mediation, most retirees agreed to a settlement which allowed for a ten-year suspension of their COLA benefit. Several dozen plaintiffs opted out of the settlement agreement, however, and instead pursued their civil claims through the litigation process. The opt-out plaintiffs' claims for violation of the Takings Clause and promissory estoppel were dismissed on the City's motion for summary judgment. The plaintiffs' claims for breach of contract and violation of the Contract Clauses of the United States and Rhode Island Constitutions went to trial. After a lengthy bench trial, the trial justice ultimately concluded that the plaintiffs had not proven their claims, and entered judgment in favor of the City on all counts of the plaintiffs' complaint. The plaintiffs appealed from the final judgment, arguing that the trial justice erred by finding in favor of the City on their Contract Clause claim and by granting summary judgment prior to trial in favor of the City on their claims for violation of the Takings Clause and for promissory estoppel. The plaintiffs also argued that some of them were absolutely immunized from any changes to their COLAs because of prior judicial adjudications. The Supreme Court reversed the judgment with respect to each plaintiff who had also been a plaintiff in prior litigation regarding their COLA benefits which had ended with either a consent judgment or an individual settlem