Advance Release Opinions – Appellate Court – August 17

Reviews of Connecticut Appellate Court advance release opinions about administrative law, civil procedure, and custody and visitation.

Administrative Law

Landmark Development Group, LLC v. Water and Sewer Commission – Commission denied Landmark’s application for 118,000 gallons per day of sewer treatment capacity. On Landmark’s appeal, Superior Court remanded to commission to clarify the capacity it would allocate to Landmark. Commission said 13,000 gallons per day. Superior Court remanded again, finding 13,000 gallons inappropriately low under the Forest Walk factors. Commission, using the Forest Walk factors, upped the allocation to 14,434 gallons. Landmark appealed again. Superior Court granted Landmark’s motion to supplement the record with evidence showing that commission had recently approved a sewer connection for someone else, Gateway, that had a contemplated capacity of 160,000 gallons per day. Superior Court remanded again, finding commission abused its discretion in allowing Landmark only 14,434 gallons when it had allowed Gateway 160,000 gallons. Commission appealed that remand. Appellate Court affirmed, finding Superior Court did not abuse its discretion by (1) supplementing the record with the Gateway evidence; (2) disregarding the Forest Walk factors when remanding for the third time; or (3) considering the Gateway evidence in reaching its third decision to remand.

Civil Procedure

Carson v. Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America – Trial court granted Allianz summary judgment because the statute of limitations barred Carson’s claim. Appellate Court affirmed, finding that Carson failed to demonstrate a genuine issue of material fact that the fraudulent concealment or continuing course of conduct doctrines applied to toll the limitations period. Appellate Court noted that there was no evidence that Allianz knew that the agent that sold the policy had fraudulently concealed anything as required for fraudulent concealment, or that Allianz had a fiduciary relationship with Carson as required for a continuing course of conduct.

Custody and Visitation

Doyle v. Chaplen – Appellate Court affirmed, finding that trial court properly granted mother’s motion to open judgment of paternity by acknowledgment because of a material mistake of fact (mother miscalculated the conception date), genetic testing showed another man to be the father, and acknowledged father did not have a parent-child relationship with the child. In doing so, trial court properly rejected acknowledged father’s claims of laches and equitable estoppel from the delay in moving to open.