Rhode Island § 45-29-24 - Eminent Domain for Housing Authority Projects

§ 45-29-24. Notice of appraisers’ report and payments to owners — Trial of objections to report.

(a) Upon payment into court as previously stated of the several amounts estimated by the appraisers or by a majority of them, to be due respectively to the several owners, the clerk of the court shall immediately give notice as the court may order, to all parties claiming damages or any interest in them, of the filing of the report, notifying each of them to file within ten (10) days after service of notice as the court directs, if he or she sees fit, his or her objection to the report.

(b) If, at the end of the period of ten (10) days, no objection is filed either by the city or by the owner with respect to the appraisal of his or her lands or his or her interest in them, the superior court shall, upon motion of the owner or of the city, order the amount of the award paid to the owners, and the payment shall be in full satisfaction of damages sustained by the taking. If at the end of that period, objection has been filed, the court shall nevertheless, after hearing the parties, order paid over to the owner of the land or interest in it, seventy-five percent (75%) of the amount of the appraisal of the land or interest, which sum, when paid, shall be irrecoverable, but without prejudice to the rights of the owner to sue for, and recover, any deficiency.

(c) The objections to the report of the appraisers shall stand for trial and be tried in every respect as other civil actions, including the right to except to rulings, to apply for new trial for cause, and to prosecute exceptions in the supreme court, but if the appellant in those proceedings shall not obtain a gross award more favorable to the appellant than the award of the appraisers, the appellant shall pay the costs of the adverse party, unless otherwise ordered by the court. If the appellant obtains therein a gross award more favorable than the award of the appraisers, the appellant shall recover his or her costs from the adverse party unless otherwise ordered by the court; but costs exclude fees of counsel.