13 results for 'judge:"Moll"'.
[Consolidated.] J. Moll finds the lower court erroneously sustained the adjacent property owner's appeal of the township's approval of a subdivision redevelopment without an environmental impact assessment. The relevant zoning procedures require only a developer submit a request for such an assessment, not that one be completed. The assessment company failed to complete the assessment as it was developing new procedures, and because the zoning laws allow the zoning commission to act without a submitted assessment, it was not improper to approve the redevelopment project. Reversed in part.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: April 26, 2024, Case #: AC46146, Categories: Environment, Property, Zoning
J. Moll finds the lower court improperly denied the bank's motion to open a previous judgment granted in favor of the condominium owners association. It improperly calculated the expenses that could be recovered by the owners association in connection with its priority lien on the foreclosed property. The relevant statute allows a priority lienholder to collect only the assessments and fees connected with the property, not any expenses incurred with remediation of the property; therefore, the case is remanded for a recalculation of expenses owed by the lender. Reversed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: April 19, 2024, Case #: AC45904, Categories: Real Estate, Damages, Banking / Lending
J. Moll finds the lower court properly dismissed the inmate's third habeas petition because his previous habeas attorney's failure to file an ineffective assistance claim against his trial counsel was not, in itself, ineffective assistance of counsel. The inmate claimed his trial attorney's performance was deficient on account of her failure to request a self-defense jury instruction, but because the victim was shot in the back as he attempted to flee and the inmate had no evidence to corroborate his claim he saw the victim reach for a gun, there was no evidence to support a self-defense instruction. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: AC45982, Categories: Habeas, Ineffective Assistance, Self Defense
J. Moll finds the customers' appeal of the lower court's grant of the construction company's motion to compel arbitration was mooted when they commenced arbitration proceedings because this court can no longer grant meaningful relief; therefore, the appeal is dismissed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: March 8, 2024, Case #: AC46298, Categories: Arbitration, Civil Procedure
J. Moll finds that the lower court erred when it held the husband in contempt of certain child support orders because his actions, taken in October 2019, could not be used to prove a violation of the orders, which did not take effect until November 2019 after he was served with the documents. However, he was properly held in contempt for the purchase of a car because such a purchase was not a "customary and usual expense," considering the husband owned another vehicle at the time of the divorce. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: February 8, 2024, Case #: AC45824, Categories: Contempt, Family Law
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J. Moll finds the lower court properly rejected the inmate's petition for a writ of a habeas corpus because he failed to prove he was prejudiced by his attorneys' failure to reopen plea negotiations after one of the charges against him was removed from the indictment, as he admitted he was unsure whether he would have accepted any plea offers. Meanwhile, the ineffective assistance claim related to the attorney's cross-examination of the victim also fail because the attorney's decision to limit his questioning was part of a reasonable strategy to limit the victim's time on the stand, while he still highlighted inconsistencies in her testimony to reduce her credibility. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: December 8, 2023, Case #: AC45273, Categories: Habeas, Ineffective Assistance, Sex Offender
J. Moll finds the trial court properly denied the dentist's motion to dismiss disciplinary charges against him on the grounds of res judicata. Previous proceedings related to a subpoena were governed by a different set of statutes and concerned the state's investigation into his billing practices, while the disciplinary charges dealt with his failure to keep adequate records. Meanwhile, the court properly revoked the dentist's license because his failure to maintain records while under investigation established probable cause, and his excuses of water damage were suspect and unsupported by any evidence. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: September 15, 2023, Case #: AC45365, Categories: Civil Procedure, Licensing, Sanctions
J. Moll finds the trial court properly granted the seller's motion for summary judgment on the buyer's counterclaim for breach of contract. The asset purchase agreement between the parties clearly removed any liability from the seller regarding unemployment tax assessments, whether they were made before or after the buyer became successor owner of the business. However, the trial court erroneously admitted several checks mailed by the buyer after it was sued because the memo line on one check, which read "CCICW Settlement," was clearly an attempt by the buyer to settle the dispute and, therefore, could not be used as proof the seller failed to mitigate its damages. Therefore, the case will be remanded to determine the amount of interest owed to the seller. Affirmed in part.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: August 31, 2023, Case #: AC44975, Categories: Tax, Damages, Contract
J. Moll finds the trial court properly denied the former partner's motion to dismiss a conversion action on statute of limitations grounds. Although more than three years passed between the initial suit filed by the company owner and the present dispute, the savings statute applied because the initial suit was brought by the company on behalf of the owner, a third party. However, the court erroneously calculated damages, as the owner was already awarded more than $8,000 for the partners' unauthorized withdrawal of $17,000 from the company checking account, which limited the damages available to the owner to $7,000, as all of the claims were related to the same occurrence. Affirmed in part.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: August 18, 2023, Case #: AC45318, Categories: Damages, Conversion, Contract
J. Moll finds the husband's argument the trial court improperly amended the divorce petition to include "intolerable cruelty" as the grounds for the couple's dissolution is meritless because no such amendment was made; rather, the court amended the petition to reflect that the breakdown of the marriage was solely the husband's fault, based on the wife's credibly testimony of abuse. Meanwhile, the award of $425 in weekly alimony payments to the wife was not an abuse of discretion because the amount was based on testimony from both parties that, in addition to his pension and disability benefits, the husband earned at least $90 per week for chainsaw and gun repair work. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: August 11, 2023, Case #: AC45226, Categories: Evidence, Family Law, Damages
J. Moll finds that the lower court properly granted the attorney's motion for summary judgment on vexatious litigation claims and properly refused to apply issue preclusion because a judgment rendered in favor of the wife during foreclosure proceedings with her husband was voided by a bankruptcy stay and, therefore, did not require a decision in the wife's favor. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: August 4, 2023, Case #: AC45296, Categories: Bankruptcy, Civil Procedure, Banking / Lending
J. Moll finds that the lower court properly issued a judgment of strict foreclosure in favor of the loan servicing company in this residential mortgage foreclosure case. The defendant lacks standing to raise her second special defense. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Moll, Filed On: July 21, 2023, Case #: AC 45926, Categories: Foreclosure