Business’s Twenty Seven Year Old Lawsuit against Providence, Rhode Island Finally Resolved
In 1982 Inge Corporation sued the state of Rhode Island for millions of dollars for breach of contract. The disputed contract related to the city providing Inge Corporation with sludge from their sewage treatment plant. The company’s business model was to turn waste sludge into bricks that could be used to burn as fuel. In 1980 the start-up company signed a contract with the city of Providence, and received a $5 million dollar loan from the federal government to build their plant.
When Rhode Island voters approved a referendum creating the Narragansett Bay Commission, the state took over the sewage treatment plant and decided not to honor the contract with Inge. With no sludge, the company defaulted on its federal loan and never opened the treatment plant. The company’s owner, James A. Notorantonio spent two years in prison after being convicted of defrauding the government.
Now, twenty seven years later, the state Supreme Court has finally ruled – they dismissed the appeal due to the fact that Inge Corporation had had its corporate charter revoked by the state of Rhode Island back in 1986, meaning the company has not legally existed for over 23 years. They also noted that the city had no authority over the sludge once it had been transferred to the Narragansett Bay Commission, and the referendum that did so was submitted before the deal was signed with Inge.
Read more about this long-lived business law case at Inge loses appeal in suit against Providence over sludge.
If you have a legal matter that is affecting your business, please contact Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A. for legal counsel.
