Opinion ID: 2077878
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Claims Disposed of at Trial

Text: The trial in this case proceeded on an agreed statement of facts and addressed two narrow claims. The first concerned Wilkinson's charge that Hilliard had violated the restraining order preventing him from taking any negative employment action against Wilkinson for refusing to clean a contaminated safe at the crime lab. The second involved defendants' alleged entitlement to reimbursement from Wilkinson for the benefits and compensation that Wilkinson had received between July 1978 and July 1994. The trial justice found no evidence that Hilliard had knowledge of the restraining order when he made certain statements to the commission (in the context of discussing whether to reappoint Wilkinson) that allegedly violated the restraining order. For conduct to constitute civil contempt, it must be proved by clear and convincing evidence that a lawful decree was violated. Durfee v. Ocean State Steel, Inc., 636 A.2d 698, 704 (R.I.1994) (quoting Trahan v. Trahan, 455 A.2d 1307, 1311 (R.I. 1983)). The hallmark of civil contempt is the disobedience of a lawful decree. Nelson v. Progressive Realty Corp., 81 R.I. 445, 448, 104 A.2d 241, 243 (1954). The trial justice found that Wilkinson had failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that Hilliard was aware of the restraining order when he made the statements in question. Upon our review of the record, we cannot say that the trial justice erred in this determination. There is no evidence in the record to demonstrate that Hilliard knew about the restraining order, or that he had disobeyed it intentionally. Therefore, we affirm the trial justice's finding on this issue. Furthermore, the trial justice found that there was no basis for defendants' counterclaims to recover the value of any benefits or other compensation bestowed on Wilkinson during the years he worked at the crime lab. As the trial justice observed [t]he basis for the plaintiff's compensation and benefits during the time the defendants mention had little or nothing to do with the status of his employment or the title of his employer. The defendants simply offered him salary and benefits based upon his position [at the crime lab] which the plaintiff accepted as part of his agreement to work. In reviewing a trial justice's decision in a nonjury civil case, we will not disturb his or her factual findings unless such findings are clearly erroneous or unless the trial justice misconceived or overlooked material evidence or unless the decision fails to do substantial justice between the parties. Harris v. Town of Lincoln, 668 A.2d 321, 326 (R.I.1995) (citing Gross v. Glazier, 495 A.2d 672, 673 (R.I.1985) and Lisi v. Marra, 424 A.2d 1052, 1055 (R.I.1981)). See Paradis v. Heritage Loan and Investment Co., 701 A.2d 812, 813 (R.I.1997) (mem.). After examining the record, we conclude that the trial justice did not misconceive or overlook any material evidence in this regard. As a commission employee working at the crime lab that was supervised by URI personnel, Wilkinson received those benefits (including tuition assistance, salary, and a shortened work week) that also were offered to URI employees who did not work at the lab. No evidence suggested that this consideration was illegal or unwarranted  especially given the unauthorized but joint supervision of the lab by both URI and the commission. As the trial justice noted, these benefits were part and parcel of Wilkinson's employment package at the crime lab and Wilkinson's entitlement to them did not depend on whether URI was his employer. The trial justice properly refused to allow defendants to deny their joint control over the lab, or to recover the value of employment benefits that they freely had offered and provided to him, and that Wilkinson freely had accepted as part of his crime-lab employment. We do not believethat the trial justice erred as a matter of law, or that he misconceived or overlooked material evidence, and we therefore affirm that portion of the judgment that rejected defendants' counterclaims.