R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-12-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-12 / Section 34-12-4
§ 34-12-4. Instruments executed by diplomatic officials outside United States.
Status: in_force

Every instrument requiring acknowledgment, executed without the limits of the United States, concerning lands lying within this state, in which instrument any ambassador, minister, charge daffaires, consul general, vice-consul general, consul, vice-consul, consular agent, commercial agent, of the United States, or commissioner appointed by the governor of this state, shall be grantor, may be executed in the presence of two (2) witnesses; and when so executed, an official certificate under the hand and official seal of the grantor that such instrument is his act and deed shall be equivalent to an acknowledgment of such instrument in the manner required by law.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-13-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-13 / Section 34-13-5
§ 34-13-5. Index of instruments recorded.
Status: in_force

(a) It shall be the duty of the clerk or recorder of deeds of each city and town within the state to make and keep a separate alphabetical general index of all deeds, mortgages, and other instruments recorded in the office of the city or town clerk or recorder of deeds, which indices shall refer to the book and page of the records wherein the deeds, mortgages, and other instruments are recorded. Mortgage discharges and assignments of mortgage shall be indexed under the names of all parties to the original mortgage instrument and all subsequent assignees of parties to the original instrument.

(b) The provisions of §§ 45-13-7  45-13-10 shall not apply to this section.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-49-6 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-49 / Section 34-49-6
§ 34-49-6. Dismissal of complaint for other cause.
Status: in_force

(a) If any person of interest, including, but not limited to the owner, claims that:

(1) The notice of lien filed by a real estate broker in the land evidence records that the commercial real estate broker lien has not been filed or recorded in accordance with the applicable provisions of this chapter; or

(2) That, for any other reason, a claimed real estate broker lien is invalid by reason or failure to comply with the provisions of this chapter, then, in such event, the person of interest may apply forthwith to the superior court, in the county where the land lies, for an order to show cause why the lien in question is invalid or otherwise void, that the basis of the lien is without probability of a judgment rendered in favor of the lienor. A mortgage holder or servicer is not a necessary party under this section and shall not be named as a party in any such application or order of notice.

(b) An order of notice to appear and show cause why the relief demanded in the complaint should not be granted shall be served upon the necessary parties no later than one week prior to the date of the scheduled hearing. If the necessary parties cannot be found, such service may be made as the court shall direct. The application shall be made upon a verified complaint accompanied by other written proof of facts upon which the application is made. Upon granting or denying the application, the court shall enter an order or judgment as applicable on the matter involved.

(c) Nothing herein shall affect the validity of, or otherwise modify or alter, the mortgage contract, nor otherwise affect, alter, or modify the mortgage holders rights under § 34-28-16.1.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-38 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-38
§ 34-18-38. Eviction for unlawfully holding over after termination or expiration of tenancy.
Status: in_force

(a) If the tenant remains in possession without the landlords consent after expiration of the term of the rental agreement or after the termination of a periodic tenancy, the landlord may commence an eviction action, which may be filed no earlier than the first day following the expiration or termination of the tenancy. The action shall be commenced by filing a Complaint for Eviction for Reason Other Than for Nonpayment of Rent, which shall be filed in the appropriate court according to the form provided in § 34-18-56(e).

(b) The summons shall be in the form provided in § 34-18-56(h) and shall specify that the tenant has twenty (20) days from the date of service in which to file their answer to the complaint, and that if the tenant fails to file their answer within that time, the tenant will be defaulted. The matter may be assigned for hearing in accordance with the rules of procedure of the appropriate court.

(c) If the tenants holdover is willful and not in good faith, the landlord may also recover, in addition to possession, an amount not more than three (3) months periodic rent or threefold the actual damages sustained by the landlord, whichever is greater, and reasonable attorneys fees. If the landlord consents to the tenants occupancy, the parties may agree to a definite term. If no term is specified, the term shall be week-to-week if the tenant pays on a week-to-week basis, and in all other cases, month-to-month.

(d) If a tenant dies during the term of the rental agreement, leaving no remaining signatories to the rental agreement living within the dwelling unit, the deceaseds live-in caregiver or any other person of at least eighteen (18) years of age residing in the dwelling unit shall be permitted to continue the rental agreement for a period of time known as the post-death rental grace period. Any such person residing in the dwelling unit who chooses to continue the rental agreement shall be known as the grace period temporary tenant. The following conditions shall apply:

(1) The grace period temporary tenant shall pay the agreed rent set forth in the rental agreement and assume all other obligations of the tenant pursuant to the terms of the existing rental agreement.

(2) If the landlord objects to assigning grace period temporary tenant status by contesting whether the person was, in fact, residing in the unit, such person shall have the burden of proving that they were, in fact, residing in the unit.

(i) The following items shall be accepted as evidence of residing in the unit:

(A) A current voter registration at the address in question;

(B) An official state identification card or motor vehicle license;

(C) A utility bill in the persons name indicating that the person resides at the address;

(D) A payroll check with the tenants name and address of residence;

(E) A letter issued by a state or federal agency;

(F) An insurance policy or associated documentation;

(G) A jury duty summons;

(H) A W-2 form or other tax document;

(I) An installment loan contract;

(J) A social security administration statement;

(K) A pension or retirement account statement;

(L) An affidavit signed under penalty of perjury indicating that the person does, in fact, reside in the unit; or

(M) Any other form of evidence that the department of housing may establish as sufficient through rule or regulation.

(ii) Even if the person seeking grace period temporary tenant status shall present sufficient evidence to satisfy the requirements of subsection (d)(2)(i) of this section, the landlord shall have the right to present evidence to the district court to rebut the claim that the person seeking grace period temporary tenant status does, in fact, reside in the unit.

(3) The grace period temporary tenant may terminate the post-death rental grace period at any time; provided, however, that the termination of the post-death rental grace period shall not be construed to relieve the grace period temporary tenant from any obligations incurred under the rental agreement during the duration of the post-death rental grace period.

(4) The length of the post-death rental grace period shall be three (3) months or the remaining term of the rental agreement, whichever is shorter, unless the grace period temporary tenant chooses a shorter period, or the landlord and the grace period temporary tenant mutually agree on a longer period. The post-death rental grace period shall commence upon the death of the leaseholder.

(5) Rent due for part of a month shall be prorated.

(6) Nothing in this section shall be construed to obligate the deceaseds live-in caregiver or any other person residing in the dwelling unit to continue the rental agreement or assume any obligations of the rental agreement.

(7) Nothing in this section shall be construed to restrict the ability of the landlord and dwelling unit resident(s) to enter into a new mutually agreeable rental agreement.

(8) Any past due rent left unpaid by the deceased tenant shall remain an obligation of the estate of the deceased tenant.

(9) Nothing in this section shall be construed to convey any civil or criminal liability on the grace period temporary tenant for any actions of the deceased tenant.

(10) The landlord shall have the right to deduct damages to the dwelling unit incurred by the deceased tenant or the grace period temporary tenant from a preexisting security deposit, pursuant to the terms of the rental agreement, provided, however, the landlord shall not have the right to require an additional security deposit from the grace period temporary tenant. If the duration of the post-death rental grace period exceeds one month, then the balance of the security deposit, net of damages deducted pursuant to § 34-18-19, shall be allocated to the grace period temporary tenant. If the duration of the post-death rental grace period does not exceed one month, then the balance of the security deposit, net of damages deducted pursuant to § 34-18-19, shall be allocated to the estate of the deceased tenant.

(11) If multiple eligible residents of the dwelling unit separately elect to become grace period temporary tenants, they shall be responsible for all obligations of the rental agreement, including rent, on a joint and several basis.

(12) If an eligible resident of the dwelling unit continues to reside within the rental unit for more than seven (7) days after the death of the deceased tenant, they shall be assumed to have elected to become a grace period temporary tenant.

(13) If there is an ongoing eviction for noncompliance with the rental agreement pursuant to § 34-18-36, the matter shall be permitted to continue as it relates to noncompliance with the rental agreement by the grace period temporary tenant.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-33-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-33 / Section 34-33-1
§ 34-33-1. Lien on baggage and property of guests.
Status: in_force

Every hotelkeeper or innkeeper shall be entitled to a lien upon, and may detain, the baggage, goods, chattels, and property of a guest brought upon his or her premises for the proper charges due from the guest on account of his or her accommodation, board and lodging and for all extras furnished at the request of the guest, and for all moneys advanced or credit extended to the guest by the hotelkeeper or innkeeper.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-1-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-1 / Section 34-1-1
§ 34-1-1. Perpetuation of colonial acts quieting title.
Status: in_force

The act entitled An Act Confirming the Grants Heretofore Made by the Inhabitants of the Towns of Newport, Providence, Portsmouth, Warwick and Westerly, passed in May, 1682, and the act entitled An Act Quieting Possessions and Establishing Title of Land Within the Towns of Bristol, Tiverton, Little Compton, Warren and Cumberland, passed in January, 1746, are hereby continued in force as perpetual statutes.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-18 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-18
§ 34-10-18. Viewers fees.
Status: in_force

Every fence viewer shall be allowed six dollars ($6.00) per day for viewing any fence on complaint made to him or her for that purpose, which fees shall be paid in the first instance by the person complaining to him or her; and in case there shall appear to be good cause of complaint, may be by him or her recovered back of the person complained against.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-42-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-42 / Section 34-42-4
§ 34-42-4. Enforcement of owners lien.
Status: in_force

(a) After default, an owner may deny an occupant access to the storage space, terminate the right of the occupant to use the storage space, enter the storage space and remove any personal property found therein to a place of safekeeping, and enforce its lien by selling the stored property at a public or private sale, in accordance with the following procedure:

(1) No sooner than five (5) days after default, but before the owner takes any action to enforce its lien, the occupant and all other persons known to claim an interest in the personal property stored shall be notified. The notice shall be delivered in person or by regular mail to the last known address of the person or persons to be notified, or by verified electronic mail, to the person or persons to be notified. This notice shall include the current balance due with a reminder to bring the past due balance current or risk the action of the owner to enforce the owners lien.

(2) No sooner than fourteen (14) days after default, the occupant shall again be notified. The notice shall be delivered in person or sent by regular mail to the last known address of the person or persons to be notified, or verified electronic mail, to the person or persons to be notified. The notice shall include:

(i) A statement of the claim showing the sums due at the time of the notice;

(ii) A statement that, based on the default, the owner has the right to deny the occupant access to the leased space;

(iii) A general description of the personal property subject to the lien if known;

(iv) A demand for payment of the claim by a specified date not less than fourteen (14) days after mailing of the notice pursuant to this subsection (a)(2);

(v) A conspicuous statement that unless the claim is paid by the specified date, the occupants right to use the storage space will terminate, and the personal property will be advertised for sale or will be otherwise disposed of at a specified time and place; and

(vi) The name, street address, and telephone number of the owner who the occupant may contact to respond to the notice.

(3) [Deleted by P.L. 2025, ch. 461, § 1.]

(4) [Deleted by P.L. 2025, ch. 461, § 1.]

(b) No sooner than one day after default, the owner may deny the occupant access to the leased space in a reasonable and peaceful manner.

(c) After expiration of the time given in the second (2nd) notice, if the claim has not been paid in full as demanded, the occupants right to use the storage space terminates, and the owner may enter the storage space and remove any personal property found therein to a place of safekeeping.

(d) After expiration of the time given in the second (2nd) notice, if the claim has not been paid in full as demanded and the owner wishes to sell the personal property to satisfy its lien, an advertisement of the sale must be published once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks on a publicly accessible website identified in the rental agreement or in a subsequent notice sent to the occupants last known address. In lieu of an advertisement on a publicly accessible website, an advertisement of the sale may be published once in a newspaper of general circulation in the city or town where the self-service storage facility is located. The advertisement must include the name of the person on whose account it is being stored and the time and place of sale.

(e) The sale shall be held at the self-service storage facility, the nearest suitable place, or online, and it shall conform to the terms of the notification.

(f) The sale shall take place no sooner than:

(1) Sixty (60) days after the occupants default; and

(2) Fifteen (15) days after final publication required pursuant to subsection (d) of this section.

(g) Before a sale of personal property, any person claiming a right to the personal property may pay the amount necessary to satisfy the lien and the reasonable expenses incurred by the owner to redeem the personal property. Upon receipt of this payment, the owner shall release the personal property to the payor and have no further liability to any person with respect to the personal property.

(h) The owner may buy at any sale of personal property pursuant to this section to enforce the owners lien.

(i) A purchaser in good faith of the personal property sold to enforce the owners lien takes the personal property free of any rights of persons against whom the lien was valid, despite noncompliance by the owner with the requirements of this section.

(j) The owner may satisfy its lien from the proceeds of any sale pursuant to this section but must hold the balance, if any, for delivery on demand to any person to whom it would have been bound to deliver the personal property. If the other party does not claim the balance of the proceeds within two (2) years of the date of the sale, it shall eschew to the state.

(k) The owner shall be liable for damages caused by failure to comply with the requirements for sale under this section and in case of willful violation is liable for conversion.

(l) The owner shall not be liable for identity theft or other harm resulting from the misuse of information contained within the contents of the occupants storage space, which are sold or otherwise disposed of to satisfy the owners lien.

(m) If the personal property in the leased space is a motor vehicle, watercraft, trailer, motorcycle, RV, or any other titled vehicle, the owner may have it towed with no liability on its part.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-16.1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-16.1
§ 34-18-16.1. Rent increases  Notice requirements.
Status: in_force

(a) Prior to an increase in rent being imposed by a landlord for a residential tenancy, excluding an independent living facility, assisted living facility, or congregate care facility, notice of the increase shall be given in writing to any tenant by a landlord at least sixty (60) days prior to the effective date of the increase.

(b) A landlord of a residential tenancy, excluding an independent living facility, assisted living facility, or congregate care facility, shall give at least one hundred twenty (120) days notice to month-to-month tenants over the age of sixty-two (62) years, before raising the rent.

(c) Provided, however, that nothing in this section shall require a landlord to provide notice of a rent increase on a timeframe that exceeds the timeframe set forth under any other state or federal law or regulation or requirement of any applicable housing program established under state or federal law or regulation.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-5
§ 34-15-5. Joinder of reversioner or remainderman with tenant for life or years.
Status: in_force

If the tenant in reversion or remainder in fee joins with the tenant for life or years in compelling partition of any lands, tenements, or hereditaments, against the other co-tenants, the partition shall be of the whole estate, and binding on the heirs and assigns of all parties. No action for partition under this section shall abate by the death of the tenant for life or years or the expiration of the term for years, but the surviving plaintiff may prosecute the action to final judgment and execution.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-14-7 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-14 / Section 34-14-7
§ 34-14-7. Notice and hearing on estrepement.
Status: in_force

Upon the application of any person for a writ of estrepement, the court, before issuing the writ, shall cause the person whose interests may be affected thereby, to be notified of the pendency of the application, in such manner as the court shall deem proper, to the end that the person so to be affected by, as well as the person applying for the writ, may be heard in the premises. Upon the hearing, the court may, in its discretion, issue or refuse to issue the writ, in the same manner as courts grant or refuse to grant injunctions in like cases.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-47 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-47
§ 34-18-47. Appeals.
Status: in_force

Appeals of actions brought under this chapter shall be pursuant to § 9-12-10.1.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-28 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-28
§ 34-15-28. Vesting of title.
Status: in_force

The recording of the plat and judgment pursuant to this chapter shall vest the legal title to the property therein described in the persons to or among whom the property is divided or allotted, and no conveyance shall be required to be executed for the purpose of vesting legal title in those persons.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-30-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-30 / Section 34-30-3
§ 34-30-3. Notice of sale.
Status: in_force

(a) Before the sale is held, notice in writing must be given to the person from whom the article to be sold was received, of the amount due for such alteration, repair, or other work, and the time and place of sale; if the residence of the person is known the notice must be mailed to his or her last known street address; but if it is unknown then the notice of the sale shall be published at least six (6) days previous to the sale in a newspaper, published in English, in the city or town in which the jeweler, watchmaker, or silversmith carries on business if the item to be sold has a fair market value in excess of one hundred dollars ($100).

(b) Fair market value as used in this section shall mean the price a willing buyer would pay to a willing seller and which the seller would accept on the open market.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-28 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-28
§ 34-28-28. Damages on withholding direct payment or consent thereto.
Status: in_force

No person in the line of privity referred to in § 34-28-27 shall unreasonably withhold his or her written consent to a direct payment, nor shall any owner or lessee or tenant or other person referred to in § 34-28-27 unreasonably withhold a direct payment, and, if the person or owner or lessee or tenant or other person shall unreasonably withhold consent therefor or payment thereof, he or she shall be liable for any damages as may accrue as the natural and probable consequences thereof.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-16 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-16
§ 34-28-16. Entry of appearance and filing of account or claim.
Status: in_force

(a) The liens, under § 34-28-1, 34-28-2, 34-28-3 or 34-28-7, of all persons, except the persons who have mailed and filed notices of intention under § 34-28-4 before the filing of the complaint and who have not been mailed a copy of the advertisement as provided in § 34-28-14 and who have no actual knowledge, on or before the return day of the citation provided for in §§ 34-28-14 and 34-28-15, of the pendency of the complaint, and the title, claim, lease, mortgage, attachment, or other lien or encumbrance of all persons who have any title, claim, lease, mortgage, attachment, or other lien or encumbrance (other than under § 34-28-1, 34-28-2, 34-28-3 or 34-28-7) to or in the property which is the subject matter of the complaint, except the persons who have recorded the lien or encumbrance before the filing of the complaint and who have not been served with or mailed a citation as provided in § 34-28-15 and who have no actual knowledge, on or before the return day, of the pendency of the complaint, shall be subordinated to the claim of the plaintiff, and persons claiming liens pursuant to this chapter, and any other person having any mortgage, attachment, or other lien or encumbrance who have entered an appearance as a party in the cause, unless the person shall, within twenty (20) days after the return day, or within such other time as may be allowed by the superior court pursuant to Rule 60(b) of the Superior Court Rules of Civil Procedure enter an appearance as a party in the cause commenced by the complaint described in §§ 34-28-10 and 34-28-13 and shall file an answer as follows:

(1) In the case of persons claiming a lien under § 34-28-1, 34-28-2, 34-28-3 or 34-28-7, file an account and demand containing the matters provided in § 34-28-13 for a complaint to enforce a lien, except that the account and demand need not contain a list of the names and addresses of the persons who have filed notices of intention under § 34-28-4, nor a list of all persons who have any recorded title, claim, lease, mortgage, attachment, or other lien or encumbrance, or

(2) In the case of persons who have any title, claim, lease, mortgage, attachment, or other lien or encumbrance (other than under § 34-28-1, 34-28-2, 34-28-3 or 34-28-7), file a claim setting forth the particulars thereof and praying for the relief and priority to which the person shall deem himself or herself entitled.

(b) Nothing in this section shall, however, bar any claim for a lien under § 34-28-1, 34-28-2, 34-28-3 or 34-28-7, by any person for work done or materials furnished, provided the person complies with the requirements of this chapter.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-22-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-22 / Section 34-22-3
§ 34-22-3. Release of power  Contract not to exercise.
Status: in_force

A person to whom any power, whether or not coupled with an interest, is given, may release, or contract not to exercise, the power, unless prevented from so doing by the terms of the power.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-16-7 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-16 / Section 34-16-7
§ 34-16-7. Presumption of lost grant by adverse possession.
Status: in_force

Open, adverse, exclusive, and uninterrupted possession and enjoyment by the plaintiff, or by his or her predecessors in title or both the plaintiff and predecessors together of the real estate or his, her, or their interest therein described in the complaint, for a period of at least ten (10) years, shall raise the rebuttable presumption in law and in fact of a lost grant, properly executed and delivered, effective to cure the defect or defects in plaintiffs title, as set forth in the complaint and/or to remove the cloud thereon, as it concerns any party named or referred to in the cause.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-37-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-37 / Section 34-37-5
§ 34-37-5. Prevention of unlawful housing practices.
Status: in_force

(a) The commission is empowered and directed to prevent any person from violating any of the provisions of this chapter, provided that before instituting a formal proceeding, it shall attempt by informal methods of conference, persuasion, and conciliation to induce compliance with this chapter.

(b) Upon the commissions own initiative or whenever an aggrieved individual or an organization chartered for the purpose of or engaged in combating discrimination or racism or of safeguarding civil liberties, that organization acting on behalf of one or more individuals being hereinafter referred to as the complainant, makes a charge, in writing, under oath, to the commission that any person, agency, bureau, corporation, or association, hereinafter referred to as the respondent, has violated or is violating, to the best of complainants knowledge and belief, any of the provisions of this chapter, and that the alleged discriminatory housing practice has occurred or terminated within one year of the date of filing, the commission may initiate a preliminary investigation and if it shall determine after the investigation that it is probable that unlawful housing practices have been or are being engaged in, it shall endeavor to eliminate the unlawful housing practices by informal methods of conference, conciliation, and persuasion. Nothing said or done during these endeavors may be used as evidence in any subsequent proceeding. If after the investigation and conference, the commission is satisfied that any unlawful housing practice of the respondent will be eliminated, it may, with the consent of the complainant, treat the charge as conciliated, and entry of that disposition shall be made on the records of the commission. If the commission fails to effect the elimination of the unlawful housing practices and to obtain voluntary compliance with this chapter, or, if the circumstances warrant, in advance of any preliminary investigation or endeavors, the commission shall have the power to issue and cause to be served upon any person or respondent a complaint stating the charges in that respect and containing a notice of hearing before the commission, a member thereof, or a hearing examiner at a place therein fixed to be held not less than ten (10) days after the service of the complaint.

(c) The commission, member thereof, or hearing examiner conducting the hearing shall have the power reasonably and fairly to amend any written complaint at any time prior to the issuance of an order based thereon. The respondent shall have like power to amend its answer to the original or amended complaint at any time prior to the issuance of the order. The commissioner assigned to the preliminary hearing of any charge shall take no part in the final hearing except as a witness upon competent matters and will have no part in the determination or decision of the case after hearing.

(d) The respondent shall have the right to file an answer to the complaint and shall appear at the hearing in person or otherwise with or without counsel to present evidence and to examine and cross-examine witnesses.

(e) In any proceeding, the commission, its member, or its agent shall not be bound by the rules of evidence prevailing in the courts.

(f) The commission shall in ascertaining the practices followed by the respondent take into account all evidence, statistical or otherwise, that may tend to prove the existence of a predetermined pattern of discrimination in housing.

(g) The testimony taken at the hearing shall be under oath and shall be reduced to writing and filed with the commission. Thereafter, in its discretion, the commission upon notice may take further testimony or hear argument.

(h)(1) If upon all the testimony taken the commission shall determine that the respondent has engaged in or is engaging in unlawful housing practices, the commission shall state its findings of fact and shall issue and cause to be served on the respondent an order requiring the respondent to cease and desist from the unlawful housing practices, and to take further affirmative or other action as will effectuate the purposes of this chapter.

(2) The commission may also order the respondent to pay the complainant damages sustained thereby; costs, including reasonable attorneys fees incurred at any time in connection with the commission of the unlawful act, and civil penalties, any amounts awarded to be deposited in the state treasury. The civil penalty shall be (i) An amount not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000) if the respondent has not been adjudged to have committed any prior discriminatory housing practice; (ii) In an amount not exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) if the respondent has been adjudged to have committed one other discriminatory housing practice during the five-year (5) period ending on the date of filing this charge; and (iii) In an amount not exceeding fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) if the respondent has been adjudged to have committed two (2) or more discriminatory housing practices during the seven-year (7) period ending on the date of the filing of this charge; except that if the acts constituting the discriminatory housing practice that is the object of the charge are committed by the same natural person who has been previously adjudged to have committed acts constituting a discriminatory housing practice, then the civil penalties set forth in (ii) and (iii) may be imposed without regard to the period of time within which any subsequent discriminatory housing practice occurred. When determining the amount of civil penalties, the commission shall consider as a mitigating factor whether the respondent has acted in good faith and whether the respondent has actively engaged in regular antidiscrimination educational programs. Provided that no order shall affect any contract, sale, encumbrance, or lease consummated before the issuance of the order and involving a bona fide purchaser, encumbrancer, or tenant without actual notice of the charge filed under this title.

(i) If the commission shall find that no probable cause exists for crediting the charges, or, if upon all the evidence, it shall find that a respondent has not engaged in unfair housing practices, the commission shall state its findings of fact and shall issue and cause to be served on the complainant an order dismissing the complaint as to the respondent. A copy of the order shall be delivered in all cases to the attorney general and such other public officers as the commission deems proper.

(j) Until a transcript of the record in a case shall be filed in a court as provided in subsection (m), the commission may at any time, upon reasonable notice, and in such manner as it shall deem proper, modify or set aside, in whole or in part, any of its findings or orders.

(k) Until such time as a hearing is convened pursuant to this section, no publicity shall be given to any proceedings before the commission, either by the commission or any employee thereof, the complainant, or the respondent, except that in the event of a conciliation agreement the agreement shall be made public unless the complainant and respondent otherwise agree and the commission determines that disclosure is not required to further the purposes of this chapter. After the complaint issues and before an order issues, the commission shall not initiate any public notice of any charge or complaint before the commission, however, the commission may respond to inquiries about the status of a complaint.

( l ) A complainant may seek a right to sue in state court if not less than one hundred and twenty (120) days and not more than two (2) years have elapsed from the date of filing of a charge, if the commission has been unable to secure a settlement agreement or conciliation agreement and if the commission has not commenced hearing on a complaint. The commission shall grant the right to sue within thirty (30) days after receipt of the request. This shall terminate all proceedings before the commission and shall give to the complainant the right to commence suit in the superior court within any county as provided in § 28-5-28 within ninety (90) days after the granting of the request. Any party may claim a trial by jury. The superior court may make orders consistent with subsection (h) and may also award punitive damages and such other damages as the court deems just and proper.

(m)(1) The commission is further empowered to file a complaint in the superior court in any county in which the unlawful housing practice allegedly occurs, or has occurred, or in which a defendant resides or maintains a business office, or in Providence County, seeking injunctive relief, including a temporary restraining order, against the defendant.

(2) No preliminary injunction shall be effective for more than thirty (30) days; provided that, if the defendant has sought judicial review of an order of the commission issued pursuant to this section, or if the commission has sought a decree of the court for the enforcement of the order, the preliminary injunction shall remain in full force and effect until such time as the judicial review or the commissions petition for the decree of enforcement is finally heard and determined.

(3) In any proceeding under this subsection, the commission may, if the prayer of the original or amended complaint so requests, proceed at the proper time to obtain the relief provided in § 34-37-6.

(4) The application by the commission for injunctive relief shall not prevent the commission from continuing to prosecute the proceeding before it out of which the application arises.

(5) Whenever a complaint shall be filed under the provisions of this subsection, the state shall be liable, in an action brought against it, for the payment of such costs and damages as may have been incurred or suffered by the defendant should final judgment be entered upon the complaint in favor of the defendant, or should the commission, having been denied temporary relief after the entry of a restraining order, fail to prosecute the matter further, or should the commission, having been granted temporary relief, fail to prosecute the matter further, unless, in the latter two (2) instances, failure to prosecute is caused by the making of an agreed settlement of any kind with the defendant, including a conciliation agreement.

(6) All proceedings taken pursuant to the provisions of this section shall take precedence over all other civil matters then pending before the court.

(n) The complainant or the respondent may elect, within twenty (20) days after receipt of a finding of probable cause, to terminate by written notice to the commission all proceedings before the commission and have the case heard in the superior court. In the event of an election to terminate the proceedings, the commission shall issue a right to sue notice to the complainant with a copy of the notice sent to all parties.

(1) The complainant shall have the right to commence suit in the superior court within any county as provided in § 28-5-28 within ninety (90) days of the date of the right to sue notice. Either party may claim a trial by jury in the superior court.

(2) Notwithstanding the termination of proceedings before the commission upon the granting of the right to sue notice, the parties may agree to have the commission seek to conciliate or mediate settlement of the case within the ninety-day (90) period in which the complainant has the right to commence suit in superior court.

(o) If an election is made under subsection (n):

(1) The complainant, the commission, or the attorney general may commence a civil action on behalf of the aggrieved person in the superior court within any county as provided in § 28-5-28 within ninety (90) days of the date of the right to sue notice under subsection (n);

(2) Any party may claim a trial by jury. Any aggrieved person with respect to the issues to be determined in a civil action under this subsection may intervene as of right in that civil action;

(3) The superior court may make orders consistent with subsection (h) and may also award punitive damages and such damages as the court deems just and proper; provided, that the court shall not enter a consent order, dismissal stipulation, or judgment settling claims of discrimination in an action or proceeding under this chapter, unless the parties and their counsel attest that a waiver of all or substantially all attorneys fees was not compelled as a condition of the settlement.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-46-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-46 / Section 34-46-5
§ 34-46-5. Enforcement of lien.
Status: in_force

A facility operator may enforce a lien created by this chapter only if the notice requirement set forth in § 34-46-4 is satisfied.

(1) Sale  Use of proceeds.

(i) If a vessel owner is in default for a period of more than ninety (90) days, a facility operator may enforce a lien by selling the vessel at a commercially reasonable public sale for cash. As used in this section, commercially reasonable shall have the same meaning as in the Uniform Commercial Code. The proceeds of the sale shall be applied in the following order:

(A) To the reasonable expenses of the sale incurred by the facility operator including, but not limited to, reasonable attorneys fees, legal expenses, and expenses of advertisement;

(B) To the satisfaction of the lien created by this chapter;

(C) To the satisfaction of all other liens on the vessel held by all lienholders of record to be paid in the order of priority; and

(D) To the extent that the proceeds of sale exceed the sum of the foregoing, the surplus must be paid by the facility operator to the vessel owner. Where the surplus is not collected within thirty (30) days of the sale, the facility operator shall provide the funds to the general treasurer as unclaimed property.

(ii) If proceeds of the sale are not sufficient to satisfy the vessel owners outstanding obligations to the facility operator or any lienholder of record, the vessel owner remains liable to the facility operator and/or lienholder for the deficiency.

(2) Advertisement  Notice of default. Before conducting a sale under this section, the facility operator shall:

(i) Personally serve a notice of default on the vessel owner if the vessel owner is a Rhode Island resident, and where applicable, personally serve a notice of default on the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel if different from the vessels registered owner, if the person or entity is a Rhode Island resident.

(A) After a licensed process server makes three (3) attempts at personal service on different days and at different times of the day at the last known address of the vessel owner and the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel if different than that of the vessels registered owner, service will be deemed effectuated by leaving a copy of the notice of default in the door of the residence and mailing a copy of the notice of default in accordance with subsection (7) of this section.

(B) The licensed process server will provide an affidavit detailing the attempts at personal service including the date, time, and location of each attempt, efforts to find an alternate address for service, where and when the notice was left, and the mailing of the notice. The notice will be deemed delivered on the date the notice is left at the residence.

(ii) In the event that either the vessel owner or the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel if different from the vessels registered owner are not Rhode Island resident(s), notice shall be in accordance with subsection (7) of this section. The facility operator shall provide a copy of the notice to each lienholder of record. In addition, the facility operator shall affix a copy of the notice of default on the outside of the vessel in a manner where it can be reasonably seen.

(iii) The notice of default must include:

(A) A statement that the vessel is subject to a lien held by the facility operator;

(B) A statement of the facility operators claim indicating the charges due on the date of the notice, the amount of any additional charges that will or may become due before the date of sale, and the date those additional charges will become due;

(C) A demand for payment of the charges due within a specified time not less than thirty (30) days after the date the last notice of default required hereunder is delivered to the vessel owner or the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel;

(D) A statement that unless the claim is paid within the time stated the vessel will be sold, specifying the time and place of the sale; and

(E) The name, street address, and telephone number of the facility operator, or the facility operators designated agent, whom the vessel owner or the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel may contact to respond to the notice.

(iv) After the expiration of the thirty-day (30) period set forth in subsection (2)(iii)(C) of this section, the facility operator shall publish an advertisement of the sale once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the area where the sale is to be held and of general circulation in the state. The advertisement must include a general description of the vessel, the name of the vessel owner, and, if applicable, the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel and the date, time, and place of the sale. The date of the sale must be more than fifteen (15) days after the date the first advertisement of the sale is published. In addition, the facility operator shall affix a copy of the advertisement on the outside of the vessel in a manner where it can be reasonably seen.

(3) Location of sale. A sale under this chapter shall be held at the facility or at the nearest suitable location.

(4) Purchasers. A purchaser of a vessel sold at a sale pursuant to this chapter takes the vessel free and clear of any rights of persons against whom the lien was valid and all other lienholders of record.

(5) Facility operator liability. If the facility operator complies with the provisions of this chapter, the facility operators liability is as follows:

(i) To a lienholder of record, the facility operators liability is limited to payment from the net proceeds received from the sale of the vessel pursuant to this section; and

(ii) To the vessel owner, the facility operators liability is limited to the net proceeds received from the sale of the vessel after payment in full of all lienholders of record pursuant to this section.

(6) Denying access to storage facility. A facility operator may deny a vessel owner who has been notified under § 34-46-4 access to the storage facility, except that the vessel owner or responsible party is entitled to access to the facility during normal business hours for the purpose of satisfying the lien or viewing and verifying the condition of the vessel.

(7) Notices. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2), all notices required by this chapter must be served by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested or by a recognized commercial courier with proof of signed-for delivery. Notices sent to a facility operator must be sent to the facility operators business address or to the address of the facility operators designated representative. Notices to a vessel owner or the person or entity the facility operator has on record as being responsible for the vessel must be sent to the persons or entitys last known address. Notices to a lienholder of record must be sent to the address of the lienholder as provided in the public filings that serve to perfect the lienholders interest in the vessel. The lienholders identity and address that the department of environmental management has in its records shall be provided to the facility operator upon written request and certification that the request is made solely for the purposes of complying with the provisions of this chapter. Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, notices are considered delivered on the date the return receipt or proof of delivery is signed or, if the notice is undeliverable, the date the post office or commercial courier last attempts to deliver the notice.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-7 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-7
§ 34-15-7. Notice to absent or unknown parties.
Status: in_force

In actions for partition of real estate, in which it may be alleged or may appear that any party or person interested therein, not a party plaintiff, is not a resident of the state, or where it is alleged or may appear that any person interested has left the state and it is not known where that person is or whether alive or dead, and, if dead, whether that person has left children, or whether some person unknown to the plaintiff is interested therein, the court before whom the action is pending may order notice to be given to any such party or person, by ordering a copy of its order to be published in some newspaper published in this state for such length of time as it may deem proper, and may also, in its discretion, order letters, postpaid and directed to the party or person, to be deposited in the post office; and where notice is given as ordered by the court, it may proceed and render judgment in the action in the same manner and with the same effect as if the party or person had received actual or personal notice or had appeared and answered to the action.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-19-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-19 / Section 34-19-3
§ 34-19-3. Service on defendant  Proceeding on nonappearance.
Status: in_force

The summons shall be served upon the party complained against, or a copy thereof left at his or her usual place of abode, six (6) days, exclusive, before the day appointed by the justice for the trial; and if, after the service of the summons, the party shall not appear to defend, the court shall proceed to the inquiry in the same manner as if he or she were present.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-42 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-42
§ 34-11-42. Transfer fees prohibited.
Status: in_force

No person or business entity who sells real property shall charge, collect, receive, or be entitled to a fee based solely on the subsequent resale or transfer of said property. This prohibition includes, but is not limited to, fees or charges imposed by a real estate developer based upon the subsequent resale or transfer of said real property. Any housing development that is covered by the definition in § 45-53-3(9) is exempt from this section. Further, any fee or charge connected with the transfer of properties with a conservation restriction as defined in § 34-39-2(a) is exempt from the provisions of this section. Further, community associations, including, but not limited to, condominium associations, homeowners associations and cooperative associations, are exempt from this section. Any covenant recorded on or after July 1, 2012, imposing any charge or fee inconsistent with this section shall be void and unenforceable against any subsequent owner, purchaser or mortgagee.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-21-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-21 / Section 34-21-3
§ 34-21-3. Service of writ where deputy is party.
Status: in_force

If any deputy sheriff is a party to the suit, then the writ shall be directed to and served by either of the town sergeants or constables in the county in which the same is to be served.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-17 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-17
§ 34-15-17. Sale binding on parties to action.
Status: in_force

No person interested in the estate and not a party to the action shall be bound by the sale, but the court may, upon motion, proceed to make all persons interested in the estate parties to the action, though nonresident, absent, or unknown, in the manner provided in this chapter; in which case, if the whole of their shares of the estate are ordered to be sold, the decree shall forever thereafter, in favor of the purchaser of the estate or shares, and of those claiming under or by virtue of the purchaser, be binding upon such nonresident, absent, or unknown person although not appearing to the action.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-10 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-10
§ 34-18-10. Service of process for actions pursuant to chapter.
Status: in_force

(a)(1) In actions for nonpayment of rent, the summons for eviction for nonpayment of rent shall be in the form provided in § 34-18-56(g). At the time of filing of the complaint, the clerk shall enter the date of hearing upon the summons, which shall be fourteen (14) to twenty-four (24) days after filing of the complaint. For the purposes of this section only, the time of filing of the complaint shall be the date upon which the clerk assigns a case number to the action and the filing fee is paid to the clerk. On the same day that the complaint is filed, the plaintiffs attorney or, if pro se, the plaintiff, or if more than one, the person filing the complaint shall mail a copy of the summons and complaint with the date of the hearing and a blank answer form as provided in § 34-18-56(j) by first class mail, to the defendant, shall complete the proof of service on a copy of the original summons and file the completed proof of service in the appropriate court. The plaintiff shall deliver the original summons and a copy thereof, together with a copy of the complaint and a blank answer form to the division of sheriffs or any constable of the county in which the appropriate court is located. The officer receiving the copies shall serve them by:

(i) Handing them to the defendant; or

(ii) Serving them at the defendants dwelling unit to a person of suitable age and discretion then residing therein; or

(iii) If none be found, by posting them conspicuously on the door to defendants dwelling unit.

(2) The deputy sheriff or constable serving the summons and complaint shall make proof of service on the original summons and shall file it with the clerk of the appropriate court at or before the time of the hearing. The proof of service shall show the manner and the day, hour, and place of service, and shall show that the defendant was served no less than five (5) days before the hearing.

(b) In all actions pursuant to this chapter other than for nonpayment of rent, the procedure shall be as follows:

(1) The summons for eviction actions pursuant to §§ 34-18-36 and 34-18-38 shall be in the form provided in § 34-18-56(h). A blank answer, in the form provided in § 34-18-56(j) shall be served together with this summons.

(2) The summons in all other actions pursuant to this chapter shall be in the form provided in § 34-18-56(i). Service shall be made pursuant to Rule 4 of the district court civil rules, or other appropriate rule of court.

(c) If a landlord or tenant is not a resident of this state or is a corporation not authorized to do business in this state and engages in any conduct in this state governed by this chapter, or engages in a transaction subject to this chapter, he or she may designate an agent upon whom service of process may be made in this state. The agent shall be a resident of this state or a corporation authorized to do business in this state. The designation shall be in writing and filed with the secretary of state. If no designation is made and filed or if the process cannot be served in this state upon the designated agent, process may be served upon the secretary of state, but service upon the secretary of state is not effective unless the plaintiff or petitioner forthwith mails a copy of the process and pleading by registered or certified mail to the defendant or respondent at his or her last reasonably ascertainable address. An affidavit of compliance with this subsection shall be filed with the clerk of the court on or before the return day of the process, if any, or within any further time the court allows.

(d) [Deleted by P.L. 2022, ch. 206, § 1 and P.L. 2022, ch. 207, § 1.]
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-23 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-23
§ 34-28-23. Application of proceeds of sale.
Status: in_force

The proceeds of the sale, after payment of the masters fees, costs and incidental charges as shall be allowed by the court, shall be applied by the master, according to his or her instructions from the court, to the payment of the claims as marshaled and ascertained, and the balance, if any, which shall remain after payment thereof, shall be paid over by the master to the owner or the lessee or tenant of the property, as the case may be.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-37-5.2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-37 / Section 34-37-5.2
§ 34-37-5.2. Discrimination in brokerage services.
Status: in_force

It shall be unlawful to deny any person who meets licensing and other non-discriminatory requirements that are also applied to other applicants and members access to, or membership or participation in, any real estate listing service, real estate brokers organization, or other service, organization, or facility relating to the business of selling, leasing, or renting a housing accommodation or to discriminate against him or her in the terms or conditions of the access, membership, or participation on account of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, military status as a veteran with an honorable discharge or an honorable or general administrative discharge, servicemember in the armed forces, country of ancestral origin, disability, age, or familial status.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-21-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-21 / Section 34-21-5
§ 34-21-5. Court examination of bond  Failure of plaintiff to comply with court order.
Status: in_force

The officer taking any goods or chattels by virtue of a writ of replevin shall not surrender or deliver the writ to the plaintiff until the amount of the plaintiffs bond and the sufficiency of the surety shall have been approved by the court to which the writ is returnable. Every officer who shall have served the writ shall make return thereof with his or her doings thereon as soon thereafter as possible to the clerk of the court to which the writ is returnable, and the cause shall then be in order for summary hearing upon the size of the plaintiffs bond and the sufficiency of his or her surety. The court after notice and hearing shall fix the amount of the plaintiffs bond and determine the sufficiency of the surety and shall enter its order accordingly. If the plaintiff fails to comply with the order within three (3) days from the entry thereof, the court shall forthwith and without hearing direct the officer in possession of the goods and chattels to return them immediately to the defendant. Thereafter, upon the defendants motion, decision shall be for the defendant for his or her damages and costs. Failure of the plaintiff to comply with the order of the court shall also operate as an adjudication of the title to the goods and chattels replevied in favor of the defendant.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-16-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-16 / Section 34-16-3
§ 34-16-3. Determination of title  Decree.
Status: in_force

A cause of action under this chapter shall follow the course of equity so far as equity is applicable, and the court shall determine the validity of the title of the plaintiffs, and may affirm the title, or if it finds other parties to have any title and estate therein, it shall also determine the interest, title, and estate of those parties therein, and may remove any clouds on the title by reason of any deed, grant, or conveyance as described in § 34-16-1 or otherwise, and all decrees in the action shall forever thereafter be binding upon all parties thereto and those claiming by, through, under, or by virtue of them, or any of them.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-27-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-27 / Section 34-27-3
§ 34-27-3. Discharge of purchaser at sale by payments to mortgagee.
Status: in_force

The receipt in writing of a mortgagee shall be a sufficient discharge for any money accruing from sales made under the powers of sale conferred by his or her mortgage; and a person paying it to the mortgagee shall not be obliged to inquire whether any money remains due under the mortgage, or to see as to the application of such proceeds in case of sale.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36-6 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-36 / Section 34-36-6
§ 34-36-6. Exclusive ownership and possession.
Status: in_force

Each unit owner shall be entitled to the exclusive ownership and possession of his or her unit.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-23 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-23
§ 34-18-23. Limitation of liability upon sale or change of management.
Status: in_force

(a)(1) A landlord who conveys premises that include a dwelling unit subject to a rental agreement in a good faith sale to a bona fide purchaser is relieved of liability under the rental agreement and this chapter as to events occurring after written notice to the tenant of the conveyance. In no event may the relief from liability predate the conveyance itself.

(2) Written notice, for purposes of this section, must include the name(s), address, and telephone number of the person or persons purchasing the property and assuming liability. To be effective, the written notice must also certify compliance with § 45-24.3-17 that prohibits sale or lease of property until any outstanding housing code violations have been corrected or the seller or lessor has provided to the buyer or lessee, as well as to the enforcing officer, all notices regarding violations as required by the statute.

(b) A manager of premises that include a dwelling unit is relieved of liability under the rental agreement and this chapter as to events occurring after written notice to the tenant of the termination of his or her management. The written notice must include the name(s), address, and telephone number of the person or persons assuming management and/or the person or persons within the state exercising ownership or responsibility over the property.

(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the tenants rights and duties under an existing rental agreement, and the purchaser of property or any immediate successor in interest to a mortgagor, other than a third-party, bona fide purchaser, of a premises containing four (4) or fewer dwelling units takes title subject to the same rights and responsibilities toward the tenant that the seller or mortgagor had.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36-23 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-36 / Section 34-36-23
§ 34-36-23. Resubmission of property to chapter.
Status: in_force

The removal provided for in § 34-36-22 shall not bar the subsequent resubmission of the property to the provisions of this chapter.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-7-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-7 / Section 34-7-5
§ 34-7-5. Utility rights-of-way not acquired by enjoyment.
Status: in_force

No enjoyment by any persons, companies or corporations, for any length of time, of the privilege of maintaining telegraph, telephone, electric, or other posts, wires or apparatus in, upon or over any lands or buildings of other persons or corporations, shall thereby confer any right to the continued enjoyment of the easement or raise any presumption of a grant thereof.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-34 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-34
§ 34-18-34. Tenants remedies for landlords unlawful ouster, exclusion, or diminution of service.
Status: in_force

If a landlord unlawfully removes or excludes the tenant from the premises or willfully diminishes services to the tenant by interrupting or causing the interruption of heat, running water, hot water, electric, gas, or other essential service, the tenant may recover possession or terminate the rental agreement and, in either case, recover an amount not more than three (3) months periodic rent or threefold the actual damages sustained by him or her, whichever is greater, and reasonable attorneys fees. If the rental agreement is terminated the landlord shall return all security recoverable under § 34-18-19 and all prepaid rent.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-5
§ 34-10-5. Barbed-wire fences through woodland  Fences existing before 1906.
Status: in_force

The provisions of §§ 34-10-2  34-10-4 shall not apply to line fences running through woodland nor to barbed-wire fences constructed before April 20, 1906.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-45-10 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-45 / Section 34-45-10
§ 34-45-10. Rule making.
Status: in_force

(a) The department shall issue such rules and regulations as may be necessary or appropriate to effectuate the purposes of this chapter. The rules and regulations shall include but need not be limited to:

(1) Specific procedural safeguards to assure that every person and entity upon whom a right of first refusal is conferred by this chapter, in accordance with the order and priorities established by § 34-45-8(c), is afforded a fair and reasonable opportunity to exercise their right; and

(2) Provisions as may be necessary or appropriate to assure that a person upon whom a right of first refusal is conferred by this chapter shall be permitted:

(i) Not less than sixty (60) days from receipt of any bona fide offer made pursuant to § 34-45-8 within which to accept the offer, and

(ii) Not less than one hundred twenty (120) days from his or her acceptance of the offer within which to secure financing as may be necessary therefor.

(b) Within sixty (60) days after June 10, 1988, the department shall publish a form containing a summary of rights and obligations pursuant to this chapter, and sources of technical assistance, which shall include, but not be limited to, information regarding counseling, subsidy programs, relocation services, housing purchase and rehabilitation financing, formation of tenant organizations, purchase of developments and conversion of developments to cooperative ownership.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-34 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-34
§ 34-11-34. Conveyances executed by attorney  Recording of power.
Status: in_force

Any conveyance executed by attorney shall be as valid as if executed by the grantor himself, providing that a power of attorney be given by such grantor for this purpose; which power and the deed executed by the attorney thereunder shall be signed, acknowledged, delivered and recorded with like formalities prescribed by law concerning deeds from grantors in person.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-12-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-12 / Section 34-12-3
§ 34-12-3. Acknowledgments in good faith before person claiming to be authorized  Penalty for misrepresentation.
Status: in_force

Any acknowledgment made in good faith before a person claiming to be one of the foregoing officials authorized to take acknowledgments within the respective jurisdictions as above, shall be valid, although the official before whom the acknowledgment is made was not duly qualified in that office; but every person who shall, within this state, wilfully take and certify to the taking of any such acknowledgment, without being lawfully qualified thereunto, shall be liable in a criminal proceeding to a fine not exceeding fifty dollars ($50.00), one-half (Â½) to the use of the complainant and the other half thereto to the use of this state.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-19-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-19 / Section 34-19-5
§ 34-19-5. Return of verdict.
Status: in_force

If, upon a full hearing of the cause, the jury shall find the complaint laid before them supported by the evidence, they shall sign and return to the court their verdict, in form following, to wit:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-25-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-25 / Section 34-25-8
§ 34-25-8. Open-end mortgages.
Status: in_force

Whenever a mortgage deed in statutory form or other form mortgaging real property is clearly entitled at the beginning thereof Open-end mortgage to secure present and future loans under chapter 25 of title 34 and in all other respects complies with the requirements of § 34-25-9, the mortgage deed shall be security from the time of its recording in the records for recording real estate mortgages in the city or town in which the real property mortgaged therein is located for all mortgage debt secured thereby at the time of recording and for all future advances secured thereby in an aggregate principal amount outstanding at any time not to exceed the stated amount of such mortgage deed, whether or not the future advances are agreed to be made at the time of recording such mortgage deed and whether or not the mortgages readvances principal sums repaid. The mortgage shall also be security for interest, taxes, insurance premiums and such other obligations as are undertaken by the mortgagor in the mortgage deed or in the note or notes or agreement secured thereby, notwithstanding that the interest, taxes, insurance premiums and other obligations, when added to the total principal amount of such loans outstanding at any time may cause the amount secured by the mortgage deed to exceed the stated maximum amount. The application of this section shall be retroactive to June 1, 1983.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-22 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-22
§ 34-18-22. Landlord to maintain premises.
Status: in_force

(a) A landlord shall:

(1) Comply with the requirements of applicable building and housing codes affecting health and safety;

(2) Make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition;

(3) Keep all common areas of the premises in a clean and safe condition;

(4) Maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and other facilities and appliances, including elevators, supplied or required to be supplied by the landlord;

(5) Provide and maintain appropriate receptacles and conveniences for the removal of ashes, garbage, rubbish, and other waste incidental to the occupancy of the dwelling unit as required by § 45-24.3-6, or applicable local codes if more restrictive, and arrange for their removal;

(6) Supply running water and reasonable amounts of hot water at all times as required by § 45-24.3-7, or applicable local codes if more restrictive, and reasonable heat as required by § 45-24.3-9, or applicable local codes if more restrictive, between October 1 and May 1, except where the building that includes the dwelling unit is not required by law to be equipped for that purpose, or the dwelling unit is so constructed that heat or hot water is generated by an installation within the exclusive control of the tenant and supplied by a direct public utility connection; and

(7) Obtain and have in full force and effect a general liability insurance policy of at least one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for those persons injured on the premises due to the negligence of the landlord. The landlord shall provide a copy of the declaration page from the carrier showing the policy to the tenant with the written lease at the beginning of the tenancy and shall provide a new copy with each policy renewal to the tenant.

(b) If the duty imposed by subsection (a)(1) is greater than any duty imposed by any other paragraph of subsection (a) of this section, the landlords duty shall be determined by reference to subsection (a)(1).

(c) The landlord and tenant of a dwelling unit may agree in writing that the tenant perform specified repairs, maintenance tasks, alterations, and remodeling but only if:

(1) The agreement of the parties is entered into in good faith and set forth in a writing signed by the parties and supported by adequate consideration;

(2) The work is not necessary to cure noncompliance with subsection (a)(1); and

(3) The agreement does not diminish or affect the obligation of the landlord to other tenants in the premises.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-29-7 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-29 / Section 34-29-7
§ 34-29-7. Severability.
Status: in_force

In case, for any reason, any section, part of section, clause or provision of this chapter shall be questioned in any court or determined to be unconstitutional or invalid, the clause or provision shall not in any way affect any other section, part of section, clause or provision of this chapter.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-27 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-27
§ 34-15-27. Report of commissioners  Judgment  Recording.
Status: in_force

In an action for partition, the commissioners appointed to make the partition shall report their proceedings, with a plat of the division by them made, to the court by which they have been appointed, and if no sufficient cause is shown for rejecting the report, judgment shall be rendered thereon in conformity thereto, and the report, plat, and judgment shall be recorded in the records of land evidence in the town or towns in which the estate is, the expense of which record shall be made a part of the costs in the action.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-39-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-39 / Section 34-39-5
§ 34-39-5. Release of restriction.
Status: in_force

(a) Subject to the express terms of a conservation or preservation restriction: a restriction held by the state may be released in the same manner as land held by the state may be sold under chapter 7 of title 37; a restriction held by cities and towns may be released in the same manner as land held by cities and towns may be sold under § 45-2-5; and a restriction held by any other governmental body may be released in accordance with applicable statutes, regulations, and procedures.

(b) A charitable corporation, association, or other entity holding a restriction may release that restriction in accordance with the express terms of a restriction, applicable bylaws, or charter provisions of the holding entity, and applicable statutes and regulations.

(c) A conservation or preservation restriction may not be terminated or amended in such a manner as to materially detract from the conservation or preservation values intended for protection without the prior approval of the court in an action in which the attorney general has been made a party. Termination may be approved only when it is found by the court that the conservation or preservation restriction does not serve the public interest or publicly beneficial conservation or preservation purpose, taking into account, among other things, the purposes expressed by the parties in the restriction. An amendment that materially detracts from a specific conservation or preservation value intended for protection may be approved only when it is found by the court that the proposed amendment: is between a separate distinct conservation or preservation restriction holder and the fee landowner; creates a net gain in the overall conservation or preservation purpose for which it was intended; and is consistent with the conservation or preservation purposes expressed by the parties in the restriction and the public conservation or preservation interest. No such approval may be sought except with the consent of the holder. If the value of the landowners estate is increased by reason of the amendment or termination of a conservation or preservation restriction, that increase shall be paid over to the holder, or to such nonprofit or governmental entity as the court may designate, to be used for the protection of conservation lands or historic resources consistent, as nearly possible, with the stated publicly beneficial conservation or preservation purposes of the restriction.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-13 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-13
§ 34-11-13. Construction of terms.
Status: in_force

(a) Whenever the phrase incorporation by reference is used in §§ 34-11-14  34-11-31, the method of incorporation as indicated in the forms shall be sufficient, but this shall not be construed to preclude other methods.

(b) Whenever the words his heirs, executors and administrators or his executors, administrators are used in §§ 34-11-14  34-11-31, they shall be construed, in the case of a corporation, to mean its successors; and whenever the words his heirs and assigns are so used, they shall be construed, in the case of a corporation, to mean its successors and assigns.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-27 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-27
§ 34-18-27. Tenant to use and occupy.
Status: in_force

Unless otherwise agreed, a tenant shall occupy his or her dwelling unit only as a dwelling unit. The rental agreement may require that the tenant notify the landlord of any anticipated extended absence from the premises in excess of ten (10) days no later than the first day of the extended absence.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-25-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-25 / Section 34-25-5
§ 34-25-5. Mortgages to which §§ 34-25-1  34-25-5 apply.
Status: in_force

(a) Mortgage, as used in §§ 34-25-1  34-25-5, means a real estate, mortgage deed or real estate mortgage instrument entitled Mortgage to secure present and future loans under §§ 34-25-1  34-25-5, and which includes in its provisions the aforesaid provision to the effect that it is intended to secure present and future loans and which states a maximum amount as the total of the amount of loans to be secured thereby; but §§ 34-25-1 to 34-25-6 shall not apply to nor affect, directly, indirectly or by implication, any mortgage made before April 29, 1952, and shall not apply to nor affect, directly, indirectly, or by implication, any mortgage thereafter made, whether or not it provides for future loans, unless it contains the provisions required in § 34-25-1 and is also entitled at the beginning thereof Mortgage to secure present and future loans under §§ 34-25-1 to 34-25-5.

(b) Mortgagor, as used in §§ 34-25-1  34-25-5, means and includes wherever applicable the mortgagor and mortgagors named in the mortgage, his, her, its or their heirs, executors, administrators, successors or assigns.

(c) Mortgagee, as used in §§ 34-25-1  34-25-5, means and includes wherever applicable the mortgagee and mortgagees named in the mortgage, his, her, its or their executors, administrators, successors or assigns.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-7-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-7 / Section 34-7-3
§ 34-7-3. Easement of light and air denied.
Status: in_force

Whoever has erected or may erect any house or other building near the land of another person, with windows overlooking the land, shall not, by mere continuance of the windows, acquire any easement of light or air so as to prevent the erection of any building thereon.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-33 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-33
§ 34-11-33. Liability on covenant against incumbrances.
Status: in_force

Whoever hereafter conveys real estate by deed or mortgage containing a covenant that it is free from all incumbrances when an incumbrance appears of record to exist thereon, whether known or unknown to him or her, shall be liable to the grantee, his or her heirs, executors, administrators, successors or assigns, for all damages and expenses sustained by reason of or in removing the incumbrance.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-4-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-4 / Section 34-4-4
§ 34-4-4. Expectant estates not dependent on precedent estates.
Status: in_force

No expectant estate shall be defeated or barred by an alienation or other act of the owner of the precedent estate, nor by the destruction of the precedent estate by disseisin, forfeiture, surrender, or merger, nor shall a contingent remainder be defeated by the termination of a precedent estate before the occurrence of the contingency on which the remainder was limited to take effect. If that contingency subsequently occurs, the remainder takes effect in the same manner as a springing or shifting executory interest.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-46 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-46
§ 34-18-46. Retaliatory conduct prohibited.
Status: in_force

(a) Except as provided in this section, a landlord may not retaliate by increasing rent or decreasing services or by bringing or threatening to bring an action for possession because:

(1) The tenant has complained to a governmental agency charged with responsibility for enforcement of a building or housing code of a violation applicable to the premises materially affecting health and safety; or

(2) The tenant has complained to the landlord of a violation under § 34-18-22; or

(3) The tenant has organized or become a member of a tenants union or similar organization; or

(4) The tenant has availed himself or herself of any other lawful rights and remedies.

(b) If the landlord acts in violation of subsection (a), the tenant is entitled to the remedies provided in § 34-18-34 and has a defense in any retaliatory action against him or her for possession. In an action by or against the tenant, evidence of a complaint within six (6) months before the alleged act of retaliation creates a presumption that the landlords conduct was in retaliation. The presumption does not arise if the tenant made the complaint after notice of a proposed rental increase or diminution of services. Presumption means that the trier of fact must find the existence of the fact presumed unless and until evidence is introduced which would support a finding of its nonexistence.

(c) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), a landlord may bring an action for possession if:

(1) The violation of the applicable building or housing code was caused primarily by lack of reasonable care by the tenant, a member of his or her family, or other person on the premises with his or her consent; or

(2) The tenant is in default in rent; or

(3) Compliance with the applicable building or housing code or other public action such as eminent domain, requires alteration, remodeling, or demolition which would effectively deprive the tenant of use of the dwelling unit, and the relocation requirements have been met by the municipality.

(d) The maintenance of an action under subsection (c) of this section does not release the landlord from liability under § 34-18-28(b).
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-12 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-12
§ 34-11-12. Statutory forms set out.
Status: in_force

The statutory forms referred to in §34-11-11 are as follows:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-21 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-21
§ 34-11-21. Statutory mortgage condition.
Status: in_force

The following condition shall be known as the statutory condition, and may be incorporated in any mortgage by reference:

Provided, nevertheless, and this conveyance is made upon the express condition, that if the mortgagor or his or her heirs, executors, administrators or assigns shall pay to the mortgagee or his or her heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns the principal and interest of that certain promissory note bearing even date with this deed and secured by this deed, and shall perform every other obligation secured by this deed, at the time provided in the promissory note or in this deed, and shall also pay all taxes and assessments of every kind levied or assessed upon or in respect of the mortgaged premises, then this deed, as also the promissory note, shall become and be absolutely void to all intents and purposes whatsoever.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-36 / Section 34-36-4
§ 34-36-4. Units deemed separable.
Status: in_force

Each unit, together with its undivided interest in the common areas and facilities, shall, for all purposes, constitute real property and may be individually conveyed, leased, and encumbered and may be inherited or devised by will and be subject to all types of juridic acts inter vivos or mortis causa as if it were sole and entirely independent of all other units, and the separate units shall have the same incidents as real property, and the corresponding individual titles and interests therein shall be recordable.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36-25 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-36 / Section 34-36-25
§ 34-36-25. Voluntary conveyance of unit.
Status: in_force

In a voluntary conveyance, the grantee of a unit shall be jointly and severally liable with the grantor for all unpaid assessments against the latter for his or her share of the common expenses up to the time of the grant or conveyance, without prejudice to the grantees rights to recover from the grantor the amounts paid by the grantee. However, the grantee shall be entitled to a statement from the manager or management committee setting forth the amounts of the unpaid assessments against the grantor, and the grantee shall not be liable for, nor shall the unit conveyed be subject to a lien for, any unpaid assessments against the grantor in excess of the amount set forth.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-4-25 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-4 / Section 34-4-25
§ 34-4-25. Invalidity of certain restrictive covenants.
Status: in_force

Since many individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities or who are mentally disabled are able to live in the community with some assistance, it is the public policy of the state of Rhode Island to establish community residences in residential areas. Therefore, any restrictive covenant or other private legal impediment which directly or indirectly prevents or restricts the establishment of licensed community residences as defined in § 40.1-24-1 for eight (8) or fewer persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities shall be void and unenforceable as to those community residences.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-30-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-30 / Section 34-30-1
§ 34-30-1. Lien for alteration or repair work.
Status: in_force

Every jeweler, watchmaker, or silversmith who shall alter, repair, or do any work on any article of personal property at the request of the owner or legal possessor thereof shall have a lien upon and may retain the possession of the article until the charges for the alteration, repairing, or other work have been paid.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-29-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-29 / Section 34-29-4
§ 34-29-4. Lien unimpaired by judgment or taking of bill or note for debt.
Status: in_force

The lien shall not be waived, merged, suspended, or impaired by the recovery of any judgment or the taking of any bill or note for the money due for such work, labor, or materials, and such lien may be enforced as though the judgment had not been recovered or the bill or note taken.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-2
§ 34-10-2. Consent of adjoining owner to barbed-wire fence.
Status: in_force

No fence shall be constructed wholly or in part of barbed wire, as a line fence between adjoining owners, without the consent in writing of the adjoining owners.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-17.1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-17.1
§ 34-28-17.1. Dismissal of complaint for other cause.
Status: in_force

(a) If any person in interest, including, but not limited to, an owner or contractor, claims: (1) that any person who has provided labor, materials or equipment or has agreed to provide funding, financing or payment for labor or materials or equipment refuses to continue to provide such funding, financing or payment for labor materials solely because of the filing or recording of a notice of intention; or (2) it appears from the notice of intention that the claimant has no valid lien by reason of the character of or the contract for the labor, materials or equipment and for which a lien is claimed; or (3) that a notice or other instrument has not been filed or recorded in accordance with the applicable provisions of § 34-28-1 et seq.; or (4) that for any other reason a claimed lien is invalid by reason or failure to comply with the provisions of § 34-28-1 et seq., then in such event, such person may apply forthwith to the superior court for the county where the land lies for an order to show cause why the lien in question is invalid, or otherwise void, or the basis of the lien is without probability of a judgment rendered in favor of the lienor. A mortgage holder or servicer is not a necessary party under this section and shall not be named as a party in any such application or order of notice.

(b) An order of notice to appear and show cause why the relief demanded in the complaint should not be granted shall be served upon the necessary parties no later than one week prior to the date of the scheduled hearing. If the necessary parties cannot be found, such service may be made as the court shall direct. The application shall be made upon a verified complaint accompanied by other written proof of facts upon which the application is made. Upon granting or denying the application, the court shall enter an order or judgment as applicable on the matter involved. Nothing herein shall affect the validity of, or otherwise modify or alter, the mortgage contract nor otherwise affect, alter or modify the mortgage holders rights under § 34-28-16.1.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-26-7 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-26 / Section 34-26-7
§ 34-26-7. Certain ancient mortgages becoming void unless continued.
Status: in_force

On and after January 1, 1989, no power of sale in any mortgage of real estate, except mortgages made by public utilities and non-amortizing mortgages made by Rhode Island housing and mortgage finance corporation now or hereafter of record, shall be exercised and no entry shall be made, nor possession taken, nor proceeding begun for foreclosure of any such mortgage after the expiration of a period which shall be thirty-five (35) years from the date of recording of the mortgage, or in the case of a mortgage in which the term or maturity date is stated, five (5) years from the expiration of the term or maturity date, unless an extension of the mortgage, or an acknowledgment by affidavit of the mortgagee that the mortgage is not satisfied, is recorded before the expiration of the applicable time period. In case an extension of the mortgage or such an acknowledgment by affidavit is so recorded, the period shall continue until five (5) years shall have elapsed during which there is not recorded any further extension of the mortgage nor acknowledgment nor affidavit that the mortgage is not satisfied. The period shall not be extended by nonresidence nor disability of any person interested in the mortgage or the real estate, or by any partial payment, agreement, extension, acknowledgment, affidavit, or other action not meeting the requirements of this section. All extensions, agreements, affidavits and acknowledgments shall be indexed in the land evidence records under the name of the present landowner. Upon the expiration of the applicable period provided herein, the mortgage shall be treated for title purposes as if it had been properly discharged by the record holder thereof.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-21-13 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-21 / Section 34-21-13
§ 34-21-13. Assumption of defense by attaching creditor.
Status: in_force

Whenever any action of replevin shall be brought against an officer who has taken or attached goods and chattels at the suit of a creditor, the creditor shall have the right to assume the defense of the suit upon indemnifying the officer against damages and costs therein, and the money recovered by way of damages by the officer shall be deemed to be recovered to the use of the attaching creditor, and when received shall be paid over to the creditor.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-29 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-29
§ 34-28-29. Form of demand for direct payment.
Status: in_force

A demand for direct payment under §34-28-27 shall be sufficient in substantially the following form:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36-20 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-36 / Section 34-36-20
§ 34-36-20. Common expenses  Payment.
Status: in_force

(a) It shall be the duty of every unit owner to pay his or her proportionate share of the common expenses. Payment shall be in amounts and at such times as determined by the management committee in accordance with the terms of the declaration or the bylaws.

(b) The amount of common expenses assessed against each unit shall be a debt of the owner at the time the assessment is made and shall be collectible as such. Suit to recover a money judgment for unpaid common expenses shall be maintainable without foreclosing or waiving the lien securing the same. If any unit owner shall fail or refuse to make any payment of the common expenses when due, the amount thereof shall constitute a lien on the interest of the owner in the property, and upon the recording of notice thereof by the manager or management committee shall be a lien upon the unit owners interest in the property prior to all other liens and encumbrances, recorded or unrecorded, except only:

(1) Tax and special assessment liens on the unit in favor of any assessing unit, and special district, and

(2) Encumbrances on the interest of the unit owner recorded prior to the date the notice is recorded which by law would be a lien prior to subsequently recorded encumbrances.

(c) The manager or management committee shall, upon the written request of any unit owner or any encumbrancer or prospective encumbrancer of a unit, upon payment of a reasonable fee not to exceed ten dollars ($10.00), issue to a person so requesting a written statement setting forth the unpaid common expenses with respect to the unit covered by the request, which shall be conclusive upon the remaining unit owners and upon the manager and management committee in favor of all persons who rely thereon in good faith. Unless the request for a statement of indebtedness shall be complied with within ten (10) days, all unpaid common expenses which became due prior to the date of the making of the request shall be subordinate to the lien held by the person requesting the statement. Any encumbrancer holding a lien on a unit may pay any unpaid common expenses payable with respect to the unit and upon the payment the encumbrancer shall have a lien on such unit for the amounts paid of the same rank as the lien of his or her encumbrance.

(d) The lien for nonpayment of common expenses may be enforced by sale or foreclosure of the unit owners interest by the manager or management committee, the sale or foreclosure to be conducted in accordance with the provisions of law applicable to the exercise of powers of sale or foreclosure in deeds of trust or mortgages or in any manner permitted by law. In any foreclosure or sale, the unit owner shall be required to pay the costs and expenses of the proceedings and reasonable attorneys fees. If so provided in the declaration or bylaws, in the case of foreclosure, the owner shall be required to pay a reasonable rental for the unit, and the plaintiff in the foreclosure action shall be entitled to the appointment of a receiver to collect the rental without regard to the value of the mortgage security.

(e) Unless otherwise provided in the declaration, the manager or management committee shall have power to bid in the unit at foreclosure or other sale and to hold, lease, mortgage, and convey the unit.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-30 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-30
§ 34-28-30. Suit on bond to secure payment.
Status: in_force

If any bond is given to secure payment for work done or materials furnished on account of the construction, erection, alteration, or reparation of any building, canal, turnpike, railroad, or other improvement or on account of any contract between the owner or lessee or tenant of the land on which the improvement is or shall be constructed, erected, altered, or repaired and any other person, the bond shall enure to the benefit of any person who does any work in the construction, erection, alteration, or reparation thereof, or who furnishes any materials used for that purpose, and the person doing the work or furnishing the materials may bring suit in his or her own name on the bond against any party thereto, notwithstanding the fact that no notice of intention under § 34-28-4 has been mailed or filed, and, further, notwithstanding the fact that he or she is not a party to the bond or to the contract between the owner or lessee or tenant and other person, and, further, notwithstanding the fact that he or she did not know of or rely on the bond or give any notice to the surety on the bond, and further, notwithstanding the fact that he or she did work or furnished materials for use on any subcontract, mediate or immediate, to such contract between the owner or lessee or tenant and the other person.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-26 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-26
§ 34-15-26. Notice by commissioners nonresidents and to absent or unknown parties.
Status: in_force

In case nonresident, absent, or unknown parties or persons are interested in the partition, the court issuing the partition shall order such notice to be given to the parties or persons interested, by the commissioners appointed to make partition, as the court shall judge proper, and the notice, when given, shall for all purposes be as effectual as personal notice.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-42-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-42 / Section 34-42-8
§ 34-42-8. Notification of local fire departments.
Status: in_force

(a) The owner of a self-service storage facility shall require each occupant to specifically identify, in writing, the amount, nature and composition of any flammable or hazardous material to be stored on the premises. The occupant shall notify the owner, in writing, within twenty-four (24) hours of the time when the flammable or hazardous materials are stored in the premises.

(b) Every occupant of any self-service storage facility shall notify the local fire department in writing of any flammable or hazardous material stored on the premises.

(c) Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be fined up to one thousand dollars ($1,000) per day, or imprisoned up to six (6) months, or both.

(d) This section shall be enforced by the city or town through its director of public safety and/or fire department and/or fire district in which the self-service storage facility is located. Nothing in this section shall be construed to preempt the duties and responsibilities under the Hazardous Waste Management Act, chapter 19.1 of title 23 as well as any municipal flammable storage ordinances.

(e) The provisions of §§ 45-13-7  45-13-10 shall not apply to this section.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-25-12 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-25 / Section 34-25-12
§ 34-25-12. Discharge of open-end mortgage.
Status: in_force

(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of § 34-26-2, no mortgagee under an open-end mortgage subject to this chapter shall be obligated to discharge the mortgage until the mortgagee receives full satisfaction for the money due thereon and receives such written agreements as the mortgagee shall reasonably request releasing the mortgagee from any further obligation to make future advances under any and all notes and agreements theretofore secured by the mortgage deed.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of any agreement by and between the mortgagee and the mortgagor or any other person, the mortgagee under the mortgage shall have the option to discharge any mortgage if there has existed no outstanding indebtedness thereunder for a continuous period of not less than two (2) years, and effective upon the recording of the discharge, the mortgagee shall be released and discharged from any further obligation to make any loans or advances under any notes or agreements executed in connection with the mortgage.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-22.3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-22.3
§ 34-18-22.3. Nonresident landlord to designate agent for service of process.
Status: in_force

A landlord who is not a resident of this state shall designate and continuously maintain an agent upon whom service may be made of any process, notice, or demand required or permitted by law to be served, including, but not limited to, notices of minimum housing code violations. The agent shall be a resident of this state or a corporation authorized to do business in this state. The landlords designation shall be in writing, shall include the name and address of the agent, shall include the street address of each property designated to the agent, and shall be filed with the secretary of state and with the clerk of the city or town wherein the dwelling unit is located. Any landlord who fails to comply with the requirements of this section shall be subject to a civil fine of one hundred dollars ($100) per month up to a maximum of one thousand two hundred dollars ($1,200) in a calendar year or if the monthly rent exceeds one thousand two hundred dollars ($1,200), the civil fine shall be one months rent for the calendar year, payable to the municipality.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-14-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-14 / Section 34-14-2
§ 34-14-2. Liability of co-tenant.
Status: in_force

Every joint tenant, tenant in common, or co-parcener who commits any waste on any estate he or she holds in joint tenancy, tenancy in common, or co-parcenary, without the consent of the other joint tenants, tenants in common, or co-parceners, shall forfeit double the amount of the waste so done, to be recovered by the other joint tenants, tenants in common, or co-parceners, to their own use.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-25 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-25
§ 34-15-25. Partition by persons appointed.
Status: in_force

The persons so appointed, first giving reasonable notice to the respective parties, shall make partition between them according to their several rights, as ascertained by the judgment of the court ordering the partition.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-14-9 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-14 / Section 34-14-9
§ 34-14-9. Return date of writ.
Status: in_force

A writ of estrepement shall be made returnable at such time as the court shall direct.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-40-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-40 / Section 34-40-1
§ 34-40-1. Definitions.
Status: in_force

For the purposes of this chapter:

(1) Solar easement means a right, whether or not stated in the form of restriction, easement, covenant, or conditions in any deed, will, or other instrument executed by or on behalf of any owner of land or solar skyspace for the purpose of ensuring adequate exposure of a solar energy system as defined in § 44-39-1(b)(1).

(2) Solar skyspace means the space between a solar energy system and the sun which must remain unobstructed such that on any given clear day of the year, not more than ten percent (10%) of the collectible insolation shall be blocked.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-14-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-14 / Section 34-14-8
§ 34-14-8. Estrepement bond.
Status: in_force

The court may, on the hearing, and before the issuing of the writ, require of the party applying for the writ a bond, with sufficient surety, in such sum as the court shall prescribe, to make good to the party whose interest may be affected by the writ all loss and damage which he or she may suffer by reason of the issuing of the writ, if the court, in its discretion, judges that the circumstances of the case or the rights of the parties require a bond to be given.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-14 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-14
§ 34-18-14. Notice.
Status: in_force

(a)(1) A person has notice of a fact if:

(i) He or she has actual knowledge of it;

(ii) He or she has received a notice or notification of it; or

(iii) From all the facts and circumstances known to him or her at the time in question he or she has reason to know that it exists.

(2) A person knows or has knowledge of a fact if he or she has actual knowledge of it.

(b) A person notifies or gives a notice or notification to another person by taking steps reasonably calculated to inform the other in ordinary course whether or not the other actually comes to know of it. A person receives a notice or notification when:

(1) It comes to his or her attention; or

(2) It is delivered in hand or sent by first class mail to him or her at a place held out by him or her as the place for receipt of the communication, or in the absence of such designation, to his or her last known place of residence.

(c) Notice, knowledge or a notice or notification received by an organization, is effective for a particular transaction from the time it is brought to the attention of the individual conducting that transaction, and in any event from the time it would have been brought to his or her attention if the organization had exercised reasonable diligence.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-50-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-50 / Section 34-50-1
§ 34-50-1. Definitions.
Status: in_force

For the purposes of this chapter:

(1) Person means a natural person, partnership, association, cooperative, corporation, trust, or other legal entity.

(2) Recording means presenting a document to a city or town clerk in the recorder of deeds office for official placement in the public land records.

(3) Residential real estate means real property located in this state which is used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes and is improved by one to four (4) dwelling units.

(4) Service agreement means a contract under which a person agrees to provide services in connection with the maintenance of or purchase or sale of residential real estate.

(5) Service provider means an individual or entity that provides services to a person.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-44-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-44 / Section 34-44-11
§ 34-44-11. Receivers entitlement to fees and commissions.
Status: in_force

A receiver appointed under this section is entitled to receive fees and commissions in the same manner and to the same extent as receivers appointed in other court proceedings.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-25-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-25 / Section 34-25-4
§ 34-25-4. Relinquishment of security as to additional loans  Stipulation as to amount due.
Status: in_force

If the mortgagor shall desire that the privilege shall be terminated of having the mortgage constitute security for further loans in addition to the loans which the mortgagee at or before the recording of the mortgage made or agreed with the mortgagor to make on the security of the mortgage, and shall desire that the principal amount of loans made or agreed upon prior to the recording on the security of the mortgage and loans made after the recording shall be established as a matter of record, and if the mortgagor shall in writing by registered or certified mail notify the mortgagee of such desire. The mortgagee shall execute and deliver to the mortgagor at the address within this state specified in the notice a stipulation in writing setting forth the principal amount of loans made or agreed to be made on the security of the mortgage prior to the time of the receipt of the notice and relinquishing the right to have the mortgage constitute security for additional loans made to the mortgagor subsequent to the receipt of the written notice except loans which the mortgagee prior to receipt of the notice agreed to make to the mortgagor. The mortgagor shall offer the stipulation for record in the records of land evidence with payment for the recording thereof, and the recorder of deeds shall record the stipulation when so offered and shall cause reference thereto to be made on the original recording of the mortgage. The recording fee for recording any such stipulation shall not exceed four dollars ($4.00).
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-11
§ 34-10-11. Partition fences between improved and unimproved lands.
Status: in_force

In case any proprietor of land shall improve his or her land, the land adjoining being unimproved, and shall make the whole partition fence, the proprietor or possessor of the land adjoining and unimproved shall, upon improvement thereof, pay for one-half (Â½) of the partition fence, according to the value thereof at that time, and shall keep up and maintain the same ever afterwards, whether he or she shall continue to improve the land or not.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-48-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-48 / Section 34-48-1
§ 34-48-1. Lien on animals for their keep  Transfer of abandoned animals.
Status: in_force

(a) When an agreement has been made between the owner of any animals, including, but not limited to, horses, birds and fish, and any person who keeps and feeds the animals, regarding the price of keeping, the animals shall be subject to a lien for the price of the keeping, in favor of the person keeping the animals; and the person keeping the animals may detain them until the debt is paid; and, if it is not paid within thirty (30) days after it is due, he or she may sell the animals, or so many as necessary at public auction, upon giving written notice to the owner of the time and place of the sale at least six (6) days before the sale, and apply the proceeds to the payment of any debts, returning the surplus, if any, to the owner.

(b) A kennel, as defined in § 4-19-2, or a veterinary hospital which boards or grooms animals for nonmedical purposes, may transfer any abandoned animal in its custody to a Rhode Island licensed nonprofit animal rescue, animal shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, or adoption organization which annually places ten (10) or more animals in private homes as pets. An animal shall be considered abandoned if the owner or keeper of the animal fails to retrieve the animal within thirty (30) days of the date the owner or keeper was scheduled to retrieve the animal. Prior to transferring the animal, the kennel or veterinary hospital shall give notice of its intention to do so to the owner or keeper at his or her last known address by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, and shall allow a period of ten (10) days to elapse after the receipt is returned before transferring the animal. Each kennel and veterinary hospital shall post in a visible location the procedures provided for in this subsection and shall give a written notice of these procedures to any person who boards an animal at a kennel or with a veterinary hospital. Any nonprofit organization which receives an animal in accordance with the provisions of this subsection shall not be liable in any civil action brought by the previous owner or keeper of the animal for any subsequent transfer or disposal of the animal by the organization.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-20-1.1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-20 / Section 34-20-1.1
§ 34-20-1.1. Damages for willful encroachment on state, municipal or nonprofit land conservation organization open space land  Civil action.
Status: in_force

(a) Definitions. As used in this section, the following words and terms shall have given to them the meanings set forth below, unless the context indicates another or different meaning or intent.

(1) Encroach means to conduct an activity that causes substantial damage or alteration to the land or vegetation or other features thereon, including, but not limited to, erecting buildings or other structures; constructing roads, driveways, or trails; destroying or moving stone walls; cutting trees or other vegetation, other than de minimus cutting; removing boundary markers; installing lawns or utilities; or using, storing, or depositing vehicles, substantial amounts of materials, or debris.

(2) Nonprofit land conservation organization means a not-for-profit entity organized with a mission of permanently protecting open-space land for conservation purposes.

(3) Open-space land means and includes, but is not limited to, any park, forest, wildlife management area, refuge, preserve, sanctuary, green or wildlife area owned, or held pursuant to a conservation restriction as defined in § 34-39-1 et seq., by the state, a political subdivision of the state, or a nonprofit land conservation organization.

(b) No person may encroach, or cause another person to encroach, on open-space land without permission of the owner of the open-space land or holder of the conservation restriction on the open-space land or without other legal authorization.

(c) Any owner, or holder of a conservation restriction as defined above in open-space land, subject to the provisions of subsection (b), may bring an action in the superior court for the county where the land is located against any person who knowingly and intentionally violates the provisions of subsection (b) with respect to the owners land or land subject to the conservation restriction. The court shall order any person who knowingly and intentionally violates the provisions of subsection (b) to restore the land to its condition as it existed prior to the violation or shall award the landowner the costs of the restoration, including reasonable management costs necessary to achieve the restoration. In addition, the court may award reasonable attorneys fees and costs and injunctive or equitable relief as the court deems appropriate.

(d) In addition to any damages and relief ordered pursuant to subsection (c), the court may award damages of up to five (5) times the cost of restoration or statutory damages of up to five thousand dollars ($5,000). In determining the amount of the award, the court shall consider the willfulness of the violation; the extent of damage done to natural resources, if any; the appraised value of any trees or shrubs damaged, or carried away as determined in accordance with the latest revision of The Guide for Plant Appraisal, as published by the International Society of Arboriculture, Urbana, Illinois, or a succeeding publisher; any economic gain realized by the violator; and any other relevant factors.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-1
§ 34-11-1. Conveyances required to be in writing and recorded.
Status: in_force

Every conveyance of lands, tenements or hereditament absolutely, by way of mortgage, or on condition, use or trust, for any term longer than one year, and all declarations of trusts concerning the conveyance, shall be void unless made in writing duly signed, acknowledged as hereinafter provided, delivered, and recorded in the records of land evidence in the town or city where the lands, tenements or hereditaments are situated; provided, however, that the conveyance, if delivered, as between the parties and their heirs, and as against those taking by gift or devise, or those having notice thereof, shall be valid and binding though not acknowledged or recorded. A lease for the term of one year or less shall be valid although made by parol. Leases for terms of more than one year may be recorded with a memorandum of lease in writing rather than the original lease; provided, however, that the memorandum shall contain the names of the parties to be charged, a description of the real estate, the duration of the lease, including renewal options and purchase options.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-37-2.1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-37 / Section 34-37-2.1
§ 34-37-2.1. Right to equal housing opportunities  Age.
Status: in_force

Whenever in this chapter there shall appear the word sex there shall be inserted immediately thereafter the word age.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-12 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-12
§ 34-10-12. Payment for previously constructed fence.
Status: in_force

Whenever the whole or more than one-half (Â½) of any partition fence shall have been made by the proprietor or possessor of the land on one side of the fence, the proprietor or possessor of the land adjoining, when he or she improves the land, shall pay to the proprietor or possessor who made the fence the value of so much of the fence erected as the fence may exceed one-half (Â½) of the fence on the whole line; and in case of his or her refusal so to do, the value shall be ascertained by any fence viewer of the town where the land is situated, on application to him or her for that purpose.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-2
§ 34-28-2. Improvements by consent of tenant or lessee.
Status: in_force

Whenever any building, canal, turnpike, railroad, or other improvement shall be constructed, erected, altered, or repaired by oral or written contract with or at the oral or written request of any lessee or tenant thereof, or by the husband of the lessee or tenant with the consent of his wife, the interest and title of the lessee or tenant in the building, canal, turnpike, railroad, or other improvement, and in the land on which the improvement is located, shall stand subject to liens for all the work done by any person in the construction, erection, alteration, or reparation of the building, canal, turnpike, railroad or other improvement, and for the materials used in the construction, erection, alteration, or reparation thereof, which have been furnished by any person, but not the interest or title of the landlord of such lessee or tenant, unless the consent in writing of the landlord is first obtained, assenting to the construction, erection, alteration, or reparation.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-45-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-45 / Section 34-45-5
§ 34-45-5. Notice of termination of section 8 contract.
Status: in_force

(a) Not less than two (2) years prior to terminating any contract under which rental assistance payments are received under § 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937, 42 U.S.C. § 1437f, an owner shall provide written notice to the corporation, specifying the reasons for the termination with sufficient detail to enable the corporation to evaluate whether the termination is lawful and whether there are additional actions that can be taken by the corporation to avoid the termination. The corporation shall review the owners notice, and shall consider whether there are additional actions that can be taken by the corporation to avoid the termination.

(b) Within thirty (30) days of the owners notice the corporation shall issue a written finding of the legality of the termination and the reasons for the termination, including the actions considered or taken to avoid the termination.

(c) For purposes of this section, termination means the expiration of the § 8 assistance contract or an owners refusal to renew the § 8 assistance contract.

(d) Within twenty-four (24) hours of providing the corporation with the notice required by this section, the owner shall:

(1) Send a copy of the notice, by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, to the tenant association of the development, and

(2) Post a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place in common areas of the development.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-47-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-47 / Section 34-47-3
§ 34-47-3. Procedure.
Status: in_force

Any person entitled to a lien under this section shall, within sixty (60) days after last furnishing of labor, money, material, or supplies for the production of, altering, or repairing of the personal property, file in the office of the federal aviation administration aircraft registry a statement in writing verified by oath showing the amount of labor, money, material, or supplies furnished for the producing, storage, parking, servicing, altering, or repairing of the personal property, the name of the person for, and by whom labor, money, material, or supplies, was furnished, and specifying the registration number of the aircraft. Unless the person entitled to the lien files the statement within the time provided in this section, he or she is deemed to have waived his or her rights to the lien; provided, however, that the lien provided for in this section does not attach to any personal property after it has been purchased by an innocent purchaser for value, and has passed into his or her possession, unless the lien has been filed with the federal aviation administration aircraft registry before the property was purchased by the purchaser, or he or she has received written notice, from the party entitled to the lien, of his or her intention to file the lien.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-22-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-22 / Section 34-22-11
§ 34-22-11. Construction of certain powers of appointment created before May 1, 1958.
Status: in_force

In the construction of any will of a person who dies, or of a deed of trust executed and becoming effective before May 1, 1958, which instrument shall create a power to appoint by will, unlimited as to the persons to whom the donee of the power may appoint, the instrument shall be deemed to permit appointment to the estate of the donee of the power unless a contrary intention shall appear by the terms thereof, or unless the donee of the power shall have deceased prior to May 1, 1958.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-27-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-27 / Section 34-27-2
§ 34-27-2. Right of mortgagee to bid at sale.
Status: in_force

At any sale by public auction made under and according to the provisions of any mortgage of real estate, or of any power of sale contained therein or annexed thereto, the mortgagee in the deed of mortgage or other conveyance, or pledgee, his, her, or their assigns, or his, her, or their heirs, executors or administrators, or any person for him, her, or them, may fairly and in good faith bid for and purchase the estate or property so put up for sale, or any part thereof, in the same manner as it may be bid for and purchased by any other person.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-47-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-47 / Section 34-47-1
§ 34-47-1. Storage and liens.
Status: in_force

Persons, including, but not limited to, the state government and any of its departments, commissions, divisions, agencies or branches thereof, maintaining public landing, parking, storage, and tie-down facilities for the landing, parking, storage, and tie-down of aircraft brought to their premises on an airport or placed in their care by or with the consent of the owners thereof, shall have a lien upon such aircraft for proper charges due them for the landing, parking, storage, and tie-down and care of the same.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-19-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-19 / Section 34-19-8
§ 34-19-8. Appeal not allowed  New trial  Judgment not bar to further action.
Status: in_force

No appeal shall be allowed from the judgment of the court, nor shall a new trial be granted, in this proceeding, nor shall the judgment be a bar to any action thereafter brought by either party.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-4-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-4 / Section 34-4-5
§ 34-4-5. Bar of estates tail preserved  Defeat of expectancies provided for by grantor.
Status: in_force

Sections 34-4-3 and 34-4-4 shall not be construed to prevent the barring of estates tail in the manner provided in §§ 34-4-14  34-4-18, nor to prevent an expectant estate from being defeated in a manner provided for or authorized by the party creating the estate.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-35-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-35 / Section 34-35-5
§ 34-35-5. Order of sale  Distribution of proceeds.
Status: in_force

If the owner makes default at the time appointed, or if, upon a hearing of the parties, it appears that a lien exists upon the property, and that the property ought to be sold for the satisfaction of the debt, the court may make an order for that purpose, and the property may be sold in conformity with the order. The court shall ascertain the amount due up to the time of the entering of the order, and any surplus of the proceeds of the sale, after satisfying the debt and all costs and charges, shall be paid into the registry of the court for the benefit of the lawful owner of the property.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-37-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-37 / Section 34-37-3
§ 34-37-3. Definitions.
Status: in_force

When used in this chapter:

(1) Age means anyone over the age of eighteen (18).

(2) Armed forces means the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Merchant Marines, Space Force, or Air Force of the United States and the Rhode Island National Guard.

(3) Commission means the Rhode Island commission for human rights created by § 28-5-8.

(4) Disability means a disability as defined in § 42-87-1.

Provided, further, that the term disability does not include current, illegal use of, or addiction to, a controlled substance, as defined in 21 U.S.C. § 802.

(5) Discriminate includes segregate, separate, or otherwise differentiate between or among individuals because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, lawful source of income, military status as a veteran with an honorable discharge or an honorable or general administrative discharge, servicemember in the armed forces, country of ancestral origin, disability, age, housing status, or familial status or because of the race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, lawful source of income, military status as a veteran with an honorable discharge or an honorable or general administrative discharge, servicemember in the armed forces, country of ancestral origin, disability, age, housing status, or familial status of any person with whom they are, or may wish to be, associated.

(6) The term domestic abuse for the purposes of this chapter shall have the same meaning as that set forth in § 15-15-1 and include all forms of domestic violence as set forth in § 12-29-2, except that the domestic abuse need not involve a minor or parties with minor children.

(7)(i) Familial status means one or more individuals who have not attained the age of eighteen (18) years being domiciled with:

(A) A parent or another person having legal custody of the individual or individuals; or

(B) The designee of the parent or other person having the custody, with the written permission of the parent or other person, provided that, if the individual is not a relative or legal dependent of the designee, that the individual shall have been domiciled with the designee for at least six (6) months.

(ii) The protections afforded against discrimination on the basis of familial status shall apply to any person who is pregnant or is in the process of securing legal custody of any individual who has not attained the age of eighteen (18) years.

(8) The terms, as used regarding persons with disabilities, auxiliary aids and services, reasonable accommodation, and reasonable modifications have the same meaning as those terms are defined in § 42-87-1.1.

(9) The term gender identity or expression includes a persons actual or perceived gender, as well as a persons gender identity, gender-related self image, gender-related appearance, or gender-related expression; whether or not that gender identity, gender-related self image, gender-related appearance, or gender-related expression is different from that traditionally associated with the persons sex at birth.

(10) Housing accommodation includes any building or structure, or portion of any building or structure, or any parcel of land, developed or undeveloped, that is occupied or is intended, designed, or arranged to be occupied, or to be developed for occupancy, as the home or residence of one or more persons.

(11) Otherwise qualified includes any person with a disability who, with respect to the rental of property, personally or with assistance arranged by the person with a disability, is capable of performing all the responsibilities of a tenant as contained in § 34-18-24.

(12) Owner includes any person having the right to sell, rent, lease, or manage a housing accommodation.

(13) Person includes one or more individuals, partnerships, associations, organizations, corporations, labor organizations, mutual companies, joint stock companies, trusts, receivers, legal representatives, trustees, other fiduciaries, or real estate brokers or real estate salespersons as defined in chapter 20.5 of title 5.

(14) Senior citizen means a person sixty-two (62) years of age or older.

(15) The term sexual orientation means having, or being perceived as having, an orientation for heterosexuality, bisexuality, or homosexuality.

(16) The term victim means a family or household member and all other persons contained within the definition of those terms as defined in § 12-29-2.

(17) The term housing status means the status of having or not having a fixed or regular residence, including the status of living on the streets or in a homeless shelter or similar temporary residence.

(18) The term lawful source of income means and includes any income, benefit, or subsidy derived from child support; alimony; Social Security; Supplemental Security Income; any other federal, state, or local public assistance program, including, but not limited to, medical or veterans assistance; any federal, state, or local rental assistance or housing subsidy program, including Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers as authorized by 42 U.S.C. § 1437; and any requirement associated with such public assistance, rental assistance, or housing subsidy program.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-50 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-50
§ 34-18-50. Payment of moving costs required.
Status: in_force

Whenever the personal property of any tenant is removed from the premises the tenant occupies by mandate of an execution from the court of competent jurisdiction, the tenant shall pay the entire amount of the cost of moving the personal property and any prepaid storage charges to the division of sheriffs, constable, or other person who lawfully caused the personal property to be so moved before the personal property can be released to the tenant by the person, firm, partnership, company, association, or corporation having lawful possession of the property. Further, the division of sheriffs, constable, or other person who lawfully caused the personal property to be so moved shall prepare and deliver a release in writing stating that the costs of moving and any prepaid storage charges have been paid in full and authorizing the release of the personal property to the tenant. This amount shall be paid to the landlord as reimbursement for the costs of removing the personal property.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-12-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-12 / Section 34-12-1
§ 34-12-1. Form of acknowledgment  Foreign acknowledgments.
Status: in_force

Acknowledgment of any instrument hereafter made need not be in any set form, but shall be made by all the parties executing the instrument and the certificate thereof shall express the ideas that the parties were each and all known to the magistrate taking the acknowledgment, and known by the magistrate to be the parties executing the instrument, and that they acknowledge the instrument to be their free act and deed; provided, however, that in case of any such instrument executed without this state, and within the limits of the United States or of any dependency thereof, if the instrument is acknowledged or proved in the manner prescribed by the law of the state, District of Columbia, territory or such dependency, where executed, it shall be deemed to be legally executed, and acknowledged and shall have the same effect as if executed and acknowledged in the mode above prescribed, including an acknowledgment by less than all parties if made in a jurisdiction the laws of which permit acknowledgments in that manner; provided, however, that instruments requiring acknowledgments by parties having opposing interests must be acknowledged by at least one party of each interest.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-16-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-16 / Section 34-16-1
§ 34-16-1. Action brought by person claiming through sale or proceedings requiring notice.
Status: in_force

Any person or persons claiming title to real estate, which title is based upon or has come through a deed of a tax collector or town or city treasurer upon sale of real estate for the collection of taxes, assessments, or municipal liens of any kind, or of a sheriff on execution sale, or any deed, grant, or conveyance given under judicial proceedings, or otherwise, the validity of which depends upon notice of any kind, may, although his or her title to the real estate is undisputed, bring a civil action against the person or persons whose title and interest, or either, were sold out under the sale or proceedings, and against any other persons that may be interested in the real estate because of the sale or proceedings, or the giving of such a deed to determine the validity of the title or estate of the person or persons therein, to remove any cloud thereon, and to affirm and quiet the possession and title of the person or persons; provided, however, that where a period of redemption is by statute provided, in which the real estate passing under any sale or proceedings described in this section may be redeemed, the period of redemption must have expired before the bringing of any action under this section.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-33 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-33
§ 34-28-33. Remedy of chapter not exclusive.
Status: in_force

Except as otherwise specified, nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit the right of any person, whether he or she have a valid lien hereunder or not, to remedies otherwise available to him or her under law; and the rights, if any, of any person who has filed his or her account and demand or claim under § 34-28-16 for any deficiency, or the rights, if any, of any person who has failed to file his or her account and demand or claim thereunder, against any other person (rather than against the property which is the subject matter of any complaint under this chapter) shall not be impaired by the provisions of this chapter. In the event that there is a conflict as to procedures between § 34-28-1 et seq. and the rules of civil procedure, then the procedures noted in § 34-28-1 et seq. shall prevail.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-35-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-35 / Section 34-35-3
§ 34-35-3. Service of citation.
Status: in_force

The citation shall contain the substance of the complaint and shall be served on the owner by a deputy sheriff, at least ten (10) days before the return day of the citation, by leaving an attested copy at the last and usual place of abode of the owner, or by reading the same in his or her presence and hearing, if he or she resides in this state. If the owner resides outside the state, the citation may be served upon him or her in the manner prescribed by law for service of subpoenas on nonresident defendants.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-37-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-37 / Section 34-37-1
§ 34-37-1. Finding and declaration of policy.
Status: in_force

(a) In the State of Rhode Island, hereinafter referred to as the state, many people are denied equal opportunity in obtaining housing accommodations and are forced to live in circumscribed areas because of discriminatory housing practices based upon race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, lawful source of income, military status as a veteran with an honorable discharge or an honorable or general administrative discharge, servicemember in the armed forces, country of ancestral origin, disability, age, familial status, or on the basis that a tenant or applicant or a member of the household is, or has been, or is threatened with being the victim of domestic abuse, or that the tenant or applicant has obtained, or sought, or is seeking, relief from any court in the form of a restraining order for protection from domestic abuse. These practices tend unjustly to condemn large groups of inhabitants to dwell in segregated districts or under depressed living conditions in crowded, unsanitary, substandard, and unhealthful accommodations. These conditions breed intergroup tension as well as vice, disease, juvenile delinquency, and crime; increase the fire hazard; endanger the public health; jeopardize the public safety, general welfare, and good order of the entire state; and impose substantial burdens on the public revenues for the abatement and relief of conditions so created. These discriminatory and segregative housing practices are inimical to and subvert the basic principles upon which the colony of Rhode Island was founded and upon which the state and the United States were later established. Discrimination and segregation in housing tend to result in segregation in our public schools and other public facilities, which is contrary to the policy of the state and the constitution of the United States. Further, discrimination and segregation in housing adversely affect urban renewal programs and the growth, progress, and prosperity of the state. In order to aid in the correction of these evils, it is necessary to safeguard the right of all individuals to equal opportunity in obtaining housing accommodations free of discrimination.

(b) It is hereby declared to be the policy of the state to assure to all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, lawful source of income, military status as a veteran with an honorable discharge or an honorable or general administrative discharge, servicemember in the armed forces, country of ancestral origin, or disability, age, familial status, housing status, or those tenants or applicants or members of a household who are, or have been, or are threatened with being the victims of domestic abuse, or those tenants or applicants who have obtained, or sought, or are seeking relief from any court in the form of a restraining order for protection from domestic abuse, equal opportunity to live in decent, safe, sanitary, and healthful accommodations anywhere within the state in order that the peace, health, safety, and general welfare of all the inhabitants of the state may be protected and ensured.

(c) The practice of discrimination in rental housing based on the lawful source of income of an applicant for tenancy, or the potential or actual tenancy of a person with a minor child, or on the basis that a tenant or applicant or a member of the household is, or has been, or is threatened with being the victim of domestic abuse, or that the tenant or applicant has obtained, or sought, or is seeking relief from any court in the form of a restraining order for protection from domestic abuse is declared to be against public policy.

(d) This chapter shall be deemed an exercise of the police power of the state for the protection of the public welfare, prosperity, health, and peace of the people of the state.

(e) Nothing in this section shall prevent a landlord from proceeding with eviction action against a tenant who fails to comply with § 34-18-24(7).
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-13-7 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-13 / Section 34-13-7
§ 34-13-7. General recording fees.
Status: in_force

(a) The fees to the recording officers for recording the following described instruments relating to real estate shall be as follows:

(b) The recording officers shall be allowed to charge a rate of one dollar ($1.00) for each additional page or fraction over.

(c) Ten percent (10%) of the recording fees provided for in this section shall be utilized by each city or town for the purposes of document preservation and technological upgrades.

(d) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the recording fee for lis pendens and/or bail property liens recorded by bailbondsmen and the recording fee to discharge lis pendens and/or bail property liens recorded by bailbondsmen shall be ten dollars ($10.00).
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-39 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-39
§ 34-11-39. Penalty for sale of lands in West Warwick subject to sewer assessment.
Status: in_force

Whoever, being the owner, or agent of the owner, of any property located in West Warwick which is or may be subject to a sewer assessment, transfers, sells, or negotiates to sell any land without a written disclosure contained in the purchasers sales agreement to the effect that all or part of the land has been so previously determined to be subject to a sewer assessment by the town of West Warwick shall be subject to a penalty of one hundred dollars ($100) for each lot or part thereof so transferred, sold, or negotiated for sale without written disclosure. The disclosure shall indicate that sewer assessments in the town are assessed according to the value of the land rather than by a flat fee per lot or by the frontage of any lot. The purchaser may recover the penalty by civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-4-6 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-4 / Section 34-4-6
§ 34-4-6. Trustee of timber land subject to life estate.
Status: in_force

When it appears that wood and timber standing on land, the use and improvement of which belongs, for life or otherwise, to a person other than the owner of the fee in the land, have ceased to improve by growth, or ought for any cause to be cut, the superior court may on petition appoint a trustee, and authorize and empower the trustee to sell and convey the wood and timber, to be cut and carried away within a time to be limited in the order of sale, and to hold, invest, reinvest, and change the investment of the proceeds thereof, after paying therefrom the expenses of the sale, and to pay over the income, above the taxes and other expenses of the trust, to the person entitled to the use and improvement while his or her right thereto continues, and, at the expiration of the right, to pay the principal sum to the owner of the land. When wood and timber have been cut as provided by this section, no more shall be cut on the land by the person entitled to the use and improvement without permission from the court. When a sale is authorized under this section, the trustee shall give, to the person as the court shall designate, a bond for the use and benefit of the persons interested in the proceeds of the sale, with condition for the faithful discharge of the trust; and the court may from time to time remove the trustee and appoint another in his or her stead, or fill a vacancy in the trusteeship whenever occasion may require.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-17 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-17
§ 34-11-17. Effect of quitclaim deed.
Status: in_force

A deed substantially following the form entitled Quitclaim Deed shall, when duly executed, have the force and effect of a deed in fee simple to the grantee and his or her heirs and assigns, to his, her, and their own use, with covenants on the part of the grantor, for himself or herself and for his or her heirs, executors, and administrators, with the grantee and his or her heirs and assigns, that he or she will, and his or her heirs, executors, and administrators shall, warrant and defend the granted premises to the grantee and his or her heirs and assigns forever against the lawful claims and demands of all persons claiming by, through, or under the grantor.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-20-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-20 / Section 34-20-11
§ 34-20-11. Termination of tenancy for failure to pay increased rent imposed as penalty.
Status: in_force

When proceedings commenced under this chapter are to regain possession of the premises following the alleged termination of a tenancy, if the defendant alleges and it appears by a preponderance of the evidence that the plaintiff attempted to increase the defendants obligations under the letting as a penalty for the justified lawful acts described in the preceding section, and that the defendants failure to perform the additional obligations was a material reason for the alleged termination, judgment shall be entered for the defendant on the claim of possession, and all the additional obligations shall be void.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-21-12 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-21 / Section 34-21-12
§ 34-21-12. Restored property subject to prior attachment.
Status: in_force

Whenever the goods and chattels replevied shall have been taken on execution or warrant of distress, they shall, in case of a judgment of return and restoration, be held responsible for the space of twenty (20) days after the return thereof; if on mesne process, until thirty (30) days shall have expired after final judgment thereon, in case judgment shall not then have been given, but if final judgment on mesne process shall have been given before the return, then for the space of twenty (20) days only after the return, to the end that the creditor, at whose suit they were originally taken, may have a complete remedy, and the benefit of his or her attachment.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-30-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-30 / Section 34-30-2
§ 34-30-2. Sale of property to enforce lien.
Status: in_force

If the charge or charges remain unpaid for a period of one year or more any jeweler, watchmaker, or silversmith may sell the article at private or public sale, and the proceeds, after first paying the expense of sale, shall be applied in payment of the charge or charges, and the balance, if any, shall be paid over to the person at whose request the alteration, repairing, or other work was done.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-36 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-36
§ 34-28-36. Short title.
Status: in_force

This chapter may be cited as the Rhode Island Mechanics Lien Law.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-4-14 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-4 / Section 34-4-14
§ 34-4-14. Liability of lands for debts of tenant in tail.
Status: in_force

All lands held in fee tail shall be liable for the debts of the tenant in tail in his or her lifetime like estates in fee simple; and when sold on execution, or when sold by guardians, the creditor or purchaser shall hold the lands in fee simple, but this shall not extend to lands in which the debtor has only an estate tail in remainder.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-24 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-24
§ 34-28-24. Masters bond.
Status: in_force

The court may, in its discretion, require of the master bond or bonds with surety or sureties in such sum and to the person or persons as it may direct, securing the faithful application of the proceeds of sale, and may from time to time remove the master on account of any noncompliance with its order or decree, and appoint a new master in his or her stead.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-38-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-38 / Section 34-38-1
§ 34-38-1. Definitions.
Status: in_force

Unless the context otherwise requires, the following terms shall be construed in this chapter to have the following meanings:

(1) Broker means a real estate broker duly licensed in this state;

(2) Disposition or dispose of means any advertisement, sale, exchange, lease, assignment, award by lottery, or other transaction designed to convey an interest in land, subdivision of land, parcel of real estate, lot, or unit thereof when undertaken for gain or profit;

(3) Offer means every advertisement, inducement, solicitation, or attempt to bring about a disposition;

(4) Persons means an individual, firm, company, association, corporation, government, or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, unincorporated association, or organization, two (2) or more of any of the foregoing having a joint or common interest, or any other legal or commercial entity;

(5) Purchaser means a person who acquired an interest in any lot, parcel, or unit in a subdivision;

(6) Salesperson means any person duly licensed in this state as a real estate salesperson;

(7) Seller or developer means a person who is engaged in the business of disposition of an interest in any lot, parcel, or unit in a subdivision;

(8) Subdivision means any improved or unimproved land or tract of land located outside this state which is divided or proposed to be divided into five (5) or more lots, parcels, units or interests for the purpose of disposition at any time as part of a common promotional plan. Any land which is under common ownership or which is controlled by a single developer or a group of developers acting in concert, is contiguous in area, and is designated or advertised as a common unit or known by a common name, shall be presumed, without regard to the number of lots, parcels, units, or interests covered by each individual offering, to be part of a common promotional plan;

(9) The department means the Rhode Island department of business regulation and the director thereof or his or her deputy.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-11
§ 34-28-11. Contents of lis pendens.
Status: in_force

(a) The notice of lis pendens required to be filed under §34-28-10 shall state that the person filing the notice of lis pendens that day has filed or will file within seven (7) days in the superior court a complaint to enforce a mechanics lien, and shall also contain:

(1) The name of the person against whom the complaint has been or will be filed and the relationship of the person to the land upon which the building, canal, turnpike, railroad, or other improvement is being or has been constructed, erected, altered, or repaired;

(2) A description of the land by metes and bounds, or by reference to a recorded plat, by tax assessors lot and plat, or by other legal description;

(3) The amount claimed (the value within two hundred (200) days) in the complaint to be due to the plaintiff;

(4) The dates of the mailing and of the filing of any notice of intention under §34-28-4 and renewal notices under §34-28-9, if any, and the name and address of the person to whom any mailing under §34-28-4 was made;

(5) The name and address of the plaintiff and of his or her attorney, if any.

(b) The notice of lis pendens may be in substantially the following form:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-3
§ 34-18-3. Supplementary principles of law applicable.
Status: in_force

(a) Unless displaced by the provisions of this chapter, the principles of law and equity, including the law relating to capacity to contract, mutuality of obligations, principal and agent, real property, public health, safety, and fire prevention, estoppel, fraud, misrepresentation, duress, coercion, mistake, bankruptcy, or other validating or invalidating cause supplements its provisions.

(b) This chapter shall apply to any rental agreement involving public housing or any type of federally subsidized or regulated housing except where:

(1) A particular subject matter has been pre-empted by federal law, or;

(2) A landlord or tenant has any rights or responsibilities derived from federal law or regulations which directly conflict with the provisions of this chapter, in which case the rights and responsibilities derived from federal laws and regulations shall control.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-39-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-39 / Section 34-39-2
§ 34-39-2. Definitions.
Status: in_force

(a) A conservation restriction shall mean a right to prohibit or require a limitation upon or an obligation to perform acts on or with respect to or uses of a land or water area, whether stated in the form of a restriction, easement, covenant, or condition, in any deed, will, or other instrument executed by or on behalf of the owner of the area or in any order of taking, which right, limitation, or obligation is appropriate to retain or maintain the land or water area, or is appropriate to provide the public the benefit of the unique features of the land or water area, including improvements thereon predominantly in its natural, scenic, or open condition, or in agricultural, farming, open space, wildlife, or forest use, or in other use or condition consistent with the protection of environmental quality.

(b) A preservation restriction shall mean a right to prohibit or require a limitation upon or an obligation to perform acts on or with respect to or uses of a structure or site historically significant for its architecture, archaeology, or associations, whether stated in the form of a restriction, easement, covenant, or condition, in any deed, will, or other instrument executed by or on behalf of the owner of the structure or site or in any order of taking, which right, limitation or obligation is appropriate to the preservation or restoration of the structure or site.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-16-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-16 / Section 34-16-11
§ 34-16-11. Service on nonresidents.
Status: in_force

A nonresident defendant whose place of residence or business is known to the plaintiff shall be served by sending the process registered or certified mail to the defendant postpaid, addressed to his or her residence or place of business last known to the plaintiff.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-12-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-12 / Section 34-12-2
§ 34-12-2. Officers authorized to take acknowledgments.
Status: in_force

Acknowledgment of any instrument required by any statute of this state to be acknowledged shall be made:

(1) Within this state, before any state senator, any state representative, judge, justice of the peace, clerk or assistant clerk of the superior court, mayor, notary public, town clerk or recorder of deeds.

(2) Without this state and within the limits of United States or any dependency thereof, before any judge or justice of a court of record or other court, justice of the peace, mayor or notary public, of the state, District of Columbia, territory or such dependency, in which such acknowledgment is made, or before any commissioner appointed by the governor of this state, or before any officer authorized by law to take acknowledgments of deeds in the place in which the acknowledgment is made.

(3) Without the limits of the United States, before any of the following officers acting within his territorial jurisdiction or within that of the court of which he or she is an officer:

(i) An ambassador, envoy, minister, chargÃ© daffaires, secretary of legation, consul-general, consul, vice-consul, consular agent, vice-consular agent, or any other diplomatic or consular agent or representative of the United States, appointed or accredited to, and residing within the country where the acknowledgment or proof is taken.

(ii) A judge or other presiding officer of any court having a seal or the clerk or other certifying officer thereof.

(iii) A mayor or other chief civil officer of any city or other political subdivision.

(iv) A notary public.

(v) A person residing in, or going to, the country where the acknowledgment or proof is to be taken, and specially authorized for that purpose by a commission issued to him or her under the seal of the superior court.

(vi) Any person authorized, by the laws of the country where the acknowledgment or proof is made, to take acknowledgments of conveyances of real estate or to administer oaths in proof of the execution thereof.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-3.1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-3.1
§ 34-28-3.1. Materials to include rental or lease of any equipment.
Status: in_force

In addition to any meaning given through judicial interpretation or context, the term material or materials, when used in this chapter shall also include the rental or lease of any equipment.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-38-10 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-38 / Section 34-38-10
§ 34-38-10. Violations.
Status: in_force

Any broker or real estate salesperson, seller, or developer violating any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof be fined not more than one hundred dollars ($100) or imprisoned for not more than six (6) months, or both, and shall in addition to any other penalty imposed by law, have his or her real estate brokers or real estate salespersons license suspended or revoked by the department for such time as in the circumstances it considers justified.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-35-2 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-35 / Section 34-35-2
§ 34-35-2. Citation to owner.
Status: in_force

Upon filing the complaint, the clerk of the court shall issue a citation to the owner of the property to appear before the court at a time and place designated, to show cause why such lien should not be allowed and enforced by the court for the amount claimed.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-27-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-27 / Section 34-27-5
§ 34-27-5. Mortgage foreclosure advertisement.
Status: in_force

An advertisement for foreclosure may, if describing the real estate being foreclosed, describe the real estate to be foreclosed by metes and bounds description and street address, or by recitation of the taxing authoritys assessors plat and lot designation and street address, or by recitation of the book and page of mortgage and street address.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-6 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-6
§ 34-18-6. Temporary restraining orders  Ex parte proceedings.
Status: in_force

(a) No temporary restraining order shall be granted without notice to the adverse party unless it clearly appears from specific facts shown by affidavit or by the verified complaint that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage will result to the applicant before notice can be served and a hearing had thereon. Every temporary restraining order granted without notice shall be endorsed with the date and hour of issuance; shall be filed forthwith in the clerks office and entered of record; and shall expire by its terms within such time after entry, not to exceed ten (10) days, as the court fixes, unless within the time so fixed, the order by consent or for good cause shown and after hearing of argument by the parties or counsel, is extended for an additional period. In case a temporary order is granted without notice, the motion for a preliminary injunction shall be set down for hearing at the earliest possible time and shall be given precedence over all matters except older matters of the same character; and when the motion comes on for hearing, the party who obtained the temporary restraining order shall proceed with the application for a preliminary injunction, and, if he or she does not do so, the court shall dissolve the temporary restraining order.

(b) On two (2) days notice to the party who obtained the temporary restraining order without notice, or on such shorter notice to that party as the court may prescribe, the adverse party may appear and move its dissolution or modification, and in that event the court shall proceed to hear and determine such motion as expeditiously as the ends of justice require.

(c) Every order granting an injunction and every restraining order shall be specific in terms; shall describe in reasonable detail the act or acts sought to be restrained; and is binding only upon the parties to the action, their officers, agents, managers, employees, and attorneys, and upon those persons in active concert or participation with them who receive actual notice of the order by personal service or otherwise.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-19-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-19 / Section 34-19-1
§ 34-19-1. Warrant for summons of jury.
Status: in_force

Whenever a complaint shall be made in writing and under oath of the complainant, or of some one in his or her behalf, to a justice of the superior court, that any person has made unlawful and forcible entry into lands or tenements, and with a strong hand detains the lands or tenements, or that, having made lawful and peaceable entry, or peaceable entry, into lands or tenements, any person unlawfully and with force holds and detains them, the court shall make out a warrant under its hand and seal, directed to the sheriff of the county in which the lands or tenements lie, or to his or her deputy, commanding him or her in behalf of the state to cause to come before the superior court, at such time and place as the court shall appoint within the county, twelve (12) good and lawful men or women of the same county, which warrant shall be in the following form:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-25-13 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-25 / Section 34-25-13
§ 34-25-13. Mortgages to which §§ 34-25-8  34-25-14 apply.
Status: in_force

(a) Mortgage, as used in §§ 34-25-8  34-25-14, means a real estate mortgage deed or real estate mortgage instrument entitled, Open-end mortgage to secure present and future loans under chapter 25 of title 34, and which includes in its provisions the terms and elements set forth in § 34-25-9; but this chapter shall not apply to nor affect, directly, indirectly or by implication, any mortgage made before June 1, 1983, and shall not apply to nor affect, directly, indirectly, or by implication, any mortgage thereafter made, whether or not it provides for future loans, unless it complies with the requirements of this chapter.

(b) Mortgagor, as used in §§ 34-25-8  34-25-14, means and includes the mortgagor and mortgagors named in the mortgage, and his, her, its or their heirs, executors, administrators, successors, or assigns, as the case may be.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-42-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-42 / Section 34-42-1
§ 34-42-1. Short title.
Status: in_force

This chapter shall be known as the Rhode Island Self-Service Storage Facility Act.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-45-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-45 / Section 34-45-8
§ 34-45-8. Offer to sell  Rights of first refusal.
Status: in_force

(a) At or before the time an owner of an existing federally insured or assisted development or an owner of a development that was federally insured or assisted within the preceding two (2) years (1) offers to sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of a development to any person or entity other than those persons or entities listed in § 34-45-7, or prepays any obligation secured by a development, in a manner which would result in either (i) a discontinuance of the use of the development as a federally insured or assisted housing development, or (ii) cause the termination of any use restrictions which apply to the development, or (2) records a declaration of condominium, pursuant to chapter 36.1 of this title, with respect to all or any portion of a federally insured or assisted development, he or she shall first provide to each person and entity listed in § 34-45-7 a written copy of a bona fide offer to sell, by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, and post a copy of the offer of sale in a conspicuous place in common areas of the development.

(b) Not less than one year prior to terminating any contract subject to § 34-45-5 of this chapter an owner shall first provide to each person and entity listed in § 34-45-7 a written copy of a bona fide offer to sell, by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, and post a copy of the offer of sale in a conspicuous place in common areas of the development.

(c) An offer of sale made pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) must contain, at a minimum:

(1) The essential terms of the sale, which shall include, but which need not be limited to:

(i) The sale price, which shall be no higher than the developments fair market value, said value to be based on its higher and best use, without affordability restrictions, as determined by the average of two (2) independent appraisals performed by two (2) appraisers qualified to perform multi-family appraisals, with one of said appraisers to be selected from a list of appraisers developed by the corporation;

(ii) The terms of seller financing, if any, including the amount, the interest rate, and the amortization rate thereof;

(iii) The terms of assumable financing, if any, including the amount, the interest rate, and the amortization rate thereof; and

(iv) Proposed improvements to the property to be made by the owner in connection with the sale, or other economic concessions by the owner in connection with the sale, if any.

(2) A statement that each of the persons listed in § 34-45-7 has the right to purchase the development under this chapter, in the order and according to the priorities established by subsection (c);

(3) A summary of tenants rights and sources of technical assistance as contained in a form prescribed by the department. If no such form has been prescribed by the department, the owner will be deemed in compliance with this paragraph if the statement refers to this chapter;

(4) A statement that the owner will make available to each of the persons listed in § 34-45-7 a floor plan of the development and an itemized list of monthly operating expenses, utility consumption rates, and capital expenditures within each of the two (2) preceding calendar years, within seven (7) days after receiving a request therefor; and

(5) A statement that the owner will make available to each of the persons listed in § 34-45-7 the most recent rent roll, a list of tenants, a list of vacant units, and a statement of the vacancy rate at the development for each of the two (2) preceding calendar years, within seven (7) days after receiving a request therefor.

(d) If a person or entity other than the persons and entities listed in § 34-45-7 offers to purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire a federally insured or assisted development in a manner which would result in either (1) a discontinuance of the use of the development as a federally insured or assisted housing development, or (2) cause the termination of any use restrictions which apply to the development, the owner of the development shall, before accepting the third-party offer, provide to each person and entity listed in § 34-45-7, by registered mail, return receipt requested, (i) written notice of the pendency and essential terms of the offer, and (ii) a bona fide offer to sell the development to those persons and entities listed in § 34-45-7 upon the same terms and conditions of the third-party offer. An offer of sale made pursuant to this subsection must contain, at a minimum, all of the information required of an offer of sale made under subsections (a) and (b). The right of first refusal created under this subsection shall not be deemed to allow any of the persons or entities listed in § 34-45-7 to vary the terms of any third-party offer made to an owner or to make a counter offer to the owner.

(e) The rights of first refusal created under this section are created and conferred in the following order and in accordance with the following priorities: (1) the tenant association of the development, first priority; (2) the corporation, second priority; (3) the housing authority of the city or town in which the development is located, third priority; and (4) the municipal government of the city or town in which the development is located, fourth priority.

(f) No right of first refusal shall apply to a government taking by eminent domain or negotiated purchase; a forced sale pursuant to a foreclosure; a transfer by gift, devise, or operation of law; or a sale to a person who would be included within the table of descent and distribution if there were to be a death intestate of an owner.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-8
§ 34-10-8. Remedies of marshland owner to trespass.
Status: in_force

If any person shall permit any cattle, sheep, horses or hogs, to him or her belonging, to run upon any tract of marshland, the owner of the marshland shall, for every trespass, have all the remedies provided in other cases by chapter 14 of title 4.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-14 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-14
§ 34-11-14. Conveyances to which rules of construction apply.
Status: in_force

For the purpose of avoiding the unnecessary use of words in deeds or other instruments relating to real estate, whether the statutory forms or other forms are used, the rules and definitions contained in §§ 34-11-15  34-11-22 and in §§ 34-11-24  34-11-28 shall apply to all such instruments executed or delivered on or after the first day of July in the year 1927.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-22-12 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-22 / Section 34-22-12
§ 34-22-12. Construction of certain powers of appointment created after May 1, 1958.
Status: in_force

In the construction of any will of a person who dies, or of a deed of trust executed and becoming effective after May 1, 1958, which instrument shall create a power to appoint by will, unlimited as to the persons to whom the donee of the power may appoint, the instrument shall be deemed to permit appointment to the estate of the donee of the power unless a contrary intention shall appear by the terms thereof.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-10-13 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-10 / Section 34-10-13
§ 34-10-13. Viewing and division of fence  Award of cost.
Status: in_force

The fence viewer, on an application, shall cite the parties in interest on the dividing line, at a convenient time, to view the fence; shall ascertain the value of the whole, and award the one-half (Â½) of the sum against the proprietor or possessor so refusing, with costs, and divide the whole fence between the parties, and make report into the office of the town clerk, which division shall be permanent; and if any person against whom report shall be made as aforesaid shall refuse to pay the sum so reported, the sum, with costs, shall be recovered by the party aggrieved, against that person, by action of debt.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-9-5 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-9 / Section 34-9-5
§ 34-9-5. Expense of proceedings.
Status: in_force

The just charges and expenses of the commissioners shall be ascertained and allowed by the court; any further costs of the proceedings shall be taxed in the usual manner; and all the costs and expenses shall be apportioned by the court upon all parties interested as aforesaid, in such proportions or amounts as the court shall deem equitable.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-16-13 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-16 / Section 34-16-13
§ 34-16-13. Proof of service  Jurisdiction of parties.
Status: in_force

The court shall be satisfied before proceeding to hear the cause on its merits that there has been full compliance with the requirements of this chapter with respect to the service of process and may accept the affidavit of any plaintiff or the plaintiffs attorney of record as proof of service of process in cases where service has been ordered by mailing or publication. All persons served in accordance with the provisions of this chapter shall be and become parties defendant to the proceedings, and the service shall be valid, and complete and fully effectual to give jurisdiction over them for the purposes of adjudicating, determining, and/or forever barring their interest and those of all others representing or in privity with them notwithstanding the legal disabilities of those persons.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-56 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-56
§ 34-18-56. Notices and complaint forms.
Status: in_force

(a) A notice in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of giving a tenant a five (5) day demand for payment of rent prior to commencement of an eviction pursuant to §34-18-35:

(b) A notice in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of giving a tenant a notice of noncompliance with the rental agreement pursuant to §34-18-36:

(c) A notice in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of giving a tenant notice of termination of tenancy pursuant to §34-18-37:

(d) A complaint in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of commencing an eviction action for nonpayment of rent pursuant to § 34-18-35:

(e) A complaint in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of commencing an eviction action for noncompliance with the rental agreement pursuant to §34-18-36, or an eviction action for unlawfully holding over after expiration or termination of the tenancy pursuant to §34-18-38:

(f) A complaint in substantially the following language, or in similar language, shall be sufficient for use by landlords or by tenants to bring any claims or causes of action other than eviction actions:

(g) The summons in an action for eviction for nonpayment of rent pursuant to §34-18-35 shall be in substantially the following form:

(h) The summons in an action for eviction for noncompliance with the rental agreement pursuant to §34-18-36, or for unlawfully holding over after termination or expiration of tenancy pursuant to §34-18-38, shall be in substantially the following form:

(i) The summons in an action relating to any claims by tenants, or by landlords other than for eviction, shall be in substantially the following form:

(j) The blank answer served in eviction actions shall be in substantially the following form:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-27-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-27 / Section 34-27-8
§ 34-27-8. Requirement of affidavit from certain tax-exempt entities.
Status: in_force

(a) Definitions. The following definitions apply in the interpretation of the provisions of this section unless the context requires another meaning:

(1) Mortgage loan means a loan to a natural person made primarily for personal, family, or household purposes secured wholly or partially by a mortgage on residential property.

(2) Residential property means real property on which there is a dwelling house with accommodations for no more than four (4) dwelling units and occupied, or to be occupied, in whole or in part, by the obligor of the mortgage debt; provided, however, that residential property shall be limited to the principal residence of a person; provided, further, that residential property shall not include an investment property or residence other than a primary residence; and provided, further, that residential property shall not include residential property taken in whole or in part as collateral for a commercial loan.

(b) In all circumstances in which an offer to purchase either a mortgage loan or residential property is made by an entity with a tax-exempt filing status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or an entity controlled by an entity with such tax-exempt filing status, no mortgagee shall require, as a condition of sale or transfer to any such entity, any affidavit, statement, agreement, or addendum limiting ownership or occupancy of the residential property in question and, if obtained, such affidavit, statement, agreement, or addendum shall not provide a basis to avoid a sale or transfer, nor shall it be enforceable against such acquiring entity or any real estate broker, mortgagor, or settlement agent named in such affidavit, statement, or addendum.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-11-43 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-11 / Section 34-11-43
§ 34-11-43. Effect of special warranty deed.
Status: in_force

A deed entitled special warranty deed shall, when duly executed, have the force and effect of a deed in fee simple to the grantee and his or her heirs and assigns, to his, her, and their own use, with covenants on the part of the grantor, for himself or herself and for his or her heirs, executors, and administrators, with the grantee and his or her heirs and assigns, that he or she will, and his or her heirs, executors, and administrators shall, warrant and defend the granted premises to the grantee and his or her heirs and assigns forever against the lawful claims and demands of all persons claiming by, through, or under the grantor.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-19-4 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-19 / Section 34-19-4
§ 34-19-4. Impaneling and oath of jurors.
Status: in_force

When the jury summoned, or such other jurors as may be taken up on a new venire to be issued by the court if occasion shall require, shall appear, they shall, to the number of twelve (12), be impaneled to inquire into the forcible entry and detainer, or forcible detainer, complained of, and the court shall lay before them the exhibited complaint, and shall administer, or cause to be administered, to them the following oath, to wit:
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-21 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-18 / Section 34-18-21
§ 34-18-21. Landlord to deliver possession of dwelling unit.
Status: in_force

At the commencement of the term a landlord shall deliver possession of the premises to the tenant in compliance with the rental agreement and § 34-18-22. The landlord may bring an action for possession against any person wrongfully in possession and may recover the damages provided in § 34-18-38(c).
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-11
§ 34-15-11. Appointment of guardian ad litem.
Status: in_force

If, in any such action, the defendant is an infant, of unsound mind or otherwise incapacitated to take care of his or her right and estate, the court before which such action shall be pending shall appoint some discreet and disinterested person as guardian to defend the infant, person of unsound mind, or person otherwise incapacitated, against the action, and in case of judgment for partition, to attend to the partition to be made, and take charge of the interest of the person for whom he or she is appointed guardian.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-28-8 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-28 / Section 34-28-8
§ 34-28-8. Land subject to lien.
Status: in_force

A notice of intention may be mailed and filed under § 34-28-4 against one or more contiguous parcels of land or parcels of land separated only by a public or private way, provided such parcels are owned, or occupied as lessee or tenant, by the same person or persons, and in such case the lien under the provisions of §§ 34-28-1, 34-28-2, 34-28-3 or 34-28-7 shall be against all of the parcels of land and all of the buildings, canals, turnpikes, railroads, or other improvements thereon in accordance with the tenor of those sections, or against the interest of the lessee or tenant therein, if the work is done or the materials are used on any of the parcels, or in any of the buildings, canals, turnpikes, railroads, or other improvements.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-39-6 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-39 / Section 34-39-6
§ 34-39-6. Use of eminent domain against conservation restrictions.
Status: in_force

Any state or local agency that is exercising a right of eminent domain over any land which is protected with a conservation restriction or preservation restriction, shall notify the agency or organization that holds the conservation or preservation restriction and the Rhode Island department of environmental management at the same time they are notifying fee property owners of their intentions to condemn the properties. Such notification shall include an explanation of the public purpose for which the land protected by the conservation or preservation restriction is being condemned.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-37-2.3 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-37 / Section 34-37-2.3
§ 34-37-2.3. Right to equal housing opportunities  Gender identity or expression.
Status: in_force

Whenever in this chapter there shall appear the words sexual orientation there shall be inserted immediately thereafter the words gender identity or expression.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-15-19 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-15 / Section 34-15-19
§ 34-15-19. Adjudication of all claims.
Status: in_force

Whenever in any action for partition of real estate it is alleged or it appears that any person claims or may claim any right, title, or interest in the estate adversely or otherwise to any party to the action, the court before whom the action is pending may order that person to appear and make his or her claim in writing therein within such time as shall be prescribed by the order, or in default thereof to be forever barred from all right, title, interest, and claim in and to the estate or any part thereof, service of the order, actual or constructive, by publication or otherwise, to be made upon the person as the court shall direct; and the court may thereupon proceed, and, if the person does not appear as required by the order, may adjudge that he or she has no right, title, interest, or claim in or to the estate, or, whether he or she appears or not, may itself, in such manner as it deems proper, or by a jury upon issues framed for that purpose, try and determine what, if any, right, title, interest, or claim he or she has therein, and adjudge accordingly, and the judgment in either event shall be final.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-14-6 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-14 / Section 34-14-6
§ 34-14-6. Power of sheriff to stay waste.
Status: in_force

The members of the division of sheriffs, charged with the service of a writ of estrepement, shall have power to stay all waste, as shall be directed in the writ, and to take such aid as shall be necessary for that purpose.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-2-1 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-2 / Section 34-2-1
§ 34-2-1. Powers of aliens.
Status: in_force

Aliens may take, hold, transmit, and convey real estate, and may sue for and recover possession of real estate in the same way and with the same effect as if they were citizens of the United States, and no title to real estate shall be invalid on account of the alienage of a former owner; but nothing contained in this section shall defeat the title to any real estate previously released or conveyed by the state or by authority thereof.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-45-11 — RI Code / Title 34 / Chapter 34-45 / Section 34-45-11
§ 34-45-11. Rights of tenants.
Status: in_force

(a) As used in this section the following words shall have the following meanings:

(1) Assistance required action means any prepayment of a mortgage obligation secured by a development or an owners failure to renew a § 8 assistance contract to the full extent of owners renewal rights thereunder.

(2) Assisted household means an individual or individuals who occupy a rental unit in a development and whose gross annual income does not exceed upper income limits imposed by any federal, state, or local government program providing financial assistance to a development.

(3) Assisted units means all the dwelling units in a federally insured or assisted development subject to regulatory requirements with respect to:

(i) The rents chargeable by the owner; or

(ii) The maximum annual income of the tenant occupying the unit, which may depend upon the income of the tenant where a given percentage of the total number of units are required to be occupied by income qualifying tenants.

(4) Designated household means any of the following households:

(i) An assisted household which includes a senior citizen or a person with a disability, provided that the senior citizen or the person with a disability has been a member of the household for a period of at least twelve (12) months preceding the giving of the notice of intent required by this section; or

(ii) An assisted household which includes any child under the age of ten (10) years.

(5) Person with a disability means a person within the definition of handicapped person in 42 U.S.C. § 1437a(b)(3).

(6) Owner or property owner means the person or combination of persons who hold legal title to a development.

(7) Relocation expenses means costs incurred to:

(i) Hire contractors, labor, vehicles, or equipment to transport personal property;

(ii) Pack and unpack personal property;

(iii) Disconnect and reconnect utilities such as water, telephone, gas, electricity, and related services; and

(iv) Disconnect and install personal property.

(8) Senior citizen means a person who is at least sixty-two (62) years old on the date that the notice of intent is given.

(9) Tenant protection assistance means the payments to, and extension of leases for, the occupant or former occupant of any assisted unit in connection with an assistance required action as required under this section.

(b) This section does not apply if, prior to any assistance required action, the owner or purchaser records a covenant running with the land on which the development is located, in a form satisfactory to the corporation, which continues for the development the existing low and moderate income rental restrictions of the federal housing program:

(1) For the duration of the term remaining as of the date of prepayment of any mortgage secured by a development; and

(2) For the duration of the remaining term as of the date of termination, including all stated and unexercised renewal terms of any rental assistance agreement described in § 34-45-5.

(c)(1) Not less than ninety (90) days before the effective date of any assistance required action, the owner of a development shall give a written notice of intent in accordance with the provisions of this section.

(2) The notice of intent to be sent to each assisted household shall contain a brief summary of the assistance required action, and shall include:

(i) A summary statement of the assisted households rights and obligations under this section;

(ii) Notice that the corporation may have additional information regarding the anticipated assistance required action; and

(iii) The name, address, and phone number of the owners agent to whom the assisted household may apply for tenant protection assistance under this section.

(d) The owner shall provide the tenant protection assistance by:

(1) Paying to each assisted household, an amount equal to the sum of:

(i) The lesser of five hundred dollars ($500) or an amount equal to any security deposit tenant is required to make and first months rent and any part of the last months rent tenant is required to pay in advance for the tenants new residence no later than the date on which the assisted household vacates the unit; and

(ii) Reimbursement to the assisted household for relocation expenses up to four hundred fifty dollars ($450) which are actually and reasonably incurred; and

(2) Offering to each assisted household which is current in its rent payment and has not violated any other material term of its lease, a lease extension for a period of at least one year from the date of the assistance required action.

(e)(1) The portion of rent for the extended lease under subdivision (d)(2) that the tenant is obligated to pay from tenants own income may not exceed thirty percent (30%) of the tenants income, and may only be increased on the anniversary of the commencement date of the assisted householders then current lease.

(2) Any such increase may not exceed the lesser of:

(i) the amount of increase permitted by applicable federal, state, or local law; and

(ii) an amount determined by multiplying the amount required to be contributed by the assisted household for rent for the preceding year by the percentage increase for the applicable U.S. consumer price index, as selected by the corporation, for the most recent twelve (12) month period.

(3) Except as permitted or required by the corporation, all other terms, conditions, and procedures governing the extended lease shall be the same as the lease in effect on the day preceding the giving of the notice of intent.

(f) An owner may not take an assistance required action affecting any unit in an assisted project occupied by a designated household without offering to the assisted household which is the tenant of the unit a lease extension for a period of at least two (2) years from the date of the assistance required action, if the designated household:

(1) Is current in its rent payment and has not violated any other material term of its lease;

(2) Has provided the owner, within thirty (30) days after the giving of the notice of intent, with a written notice:

(i) Stating that the designated household is applying for an extended lease under this section; and

(ii) Setting forth facts, as applicable, showing that:

(A) A member of the household is either a person with a disability or a senior citizen who has been a member of the household for at least twelve (12) months preceding the giving of the notice of intent; or

(B) A member of the household is a child under the age of ten (10) years; and

(3) Has executed an extended lease and returned it to the owner within thirty (30) days after the giving of the notice of intent.

(g) The owner shall deliver to each assisted household entitled to receive the notice of intent, simultaneously with the notice of intent:

(1) An application on which may be included all of the information required by subdivision (f)(2);

(2) A lease containing the terms required by this section and clearly indicating that the lease will be effective only if the assisted household executes and returns the lease not later than thirty (30) days after the giving of the notice of intent; and

(3) A notice setting forth the rights and obligations of the assisted household under this section.

(h) Within forty-five (45) days after the giving of the notice of intent, the owner shall notify each assisted household whether it meets the applicable criteria for an extended lease under subdivision (d)(2) and such notice shall include the approximate ending date of the extended lease and each designated household which submits to the owner the documentation required by subdivisions (f)(2) and (3) shall be entitled to notification by the owner as to the following:

(1) Whether the household meets the applicable criteria of subsection (f), and, if not, an explanation of which criteria have not been met; and

(2) Whether the extended lease has been effective under subsection (f).

(i)(1) The extended lease of a designated household shall provide for a term commencing on the date of the assistance required action and terminating not less than two (2) years from that date.

(2) The initial rate of rent for the extended lease may not exceed an amount which requires the tenant to contribute more than thirty percent (30%) of the tenants income.

(3)(i) Annually, on the anniversary of the commencement date of the extended lease of a designated household, the rental fee for the unit may be increased.

(ii) The increase may not exceed an amount determined by multiplying the amount required to be contributed by the household for annual report for the preceding year by the percentage increase for the applicable U.S. consumer price index, as selected by the secretary, for the most recent twelve (12) month period.

(4) Except as this section otherwise permits or requires, the extended lease of a designated household shall contain the same terms and conditions as the lease in effect on the day preceding the giving of the notice of intent.

(j) The extended tenancy provided for in this section shall cease upon the occurrence of any of the following:

(1) Ninety (90) days after the death of the last surviving member of the assisted household who was residing in the unit at the date of the notice of intent, or ninety (90) days after the last member of the assisted household at the date of the notice of intent has moved from the unit;

(2) Eviction for failure to pay rent due in a timely fashion or violation of a material term of the lease; or

(3) Voluntary termination of the lease by the designated household.

(k) No later than the date on which the designated household vacates the unit, the owner shall pay relocation expenses in accordance with this section.

(l) In connection with any assistance required action:

(1) An owner may not terminate or alter the terms and conditions of any leases entered into before the effective date of the assistance required action, or otherwise take any action to interfere with any existing rights of tenants to occupy their units of the assisted project under existing leases or under any applicable federal, state, or local law;

(2) All tenants shall cooperate with the owner in providing information necessary to certify eligibility for housing subsidy payments, including execution of all necessary documents.

(m) Notwithstanding any provision of subsections (e) or (f) to the contrary, in the event that an owner is unable to obtain from the U.S. department of housing and urban development an extension of existing rental subsidies to cover the lease extension, the owner shall only be required to provide for each assisted household, whether or not occupied by a designated household, a lease extension of a period of one year from the date of the assistance required action; provided, however, that an owner may withdraw funds from existing reserve and residual accounts of the development to pay any deficit in the debt service or operating expenses of the development resulting from the tenants obligation to pay as rent only, a sum not more than thirty percent (30%) of the tenants income as provided in subsection (e), but only to the extent that the withdrawal is approved by the corporation, approval to be given if adequate funds remain in reserve and residual accounts, for the maintenance and repair of the development in accordance with the standards of the corporation.

(n) The owner shall inform those assisted households which the owner has deemed not to meet the applicable criteria for an extended lease of the reasons the households failed to meet the criteria, and of their right to appeal the decision to the corporation. Any assisted household may appeal the decision of an owner to deny the household an extended lease under subdivision (d)(2) or subsection (f) to the corporation by requesting in writing an informal hearing before the corporation within ten (10) days of the owners decision. The corporation shall hear and resolve the appeal within ten (10) days of receiving the hearing request, by either affirming the owners decision or ordering the owner to execute the appropriate extended lease with the assisted household.