In the pending case of Brunswick Citizens for Collaborative
Government, et al. v. Town of Brunswick, (Cumberland County Superior Court)
the Petitioners claim that the Town of Brunswick failed to follow its Charter
procedure to hold a public hearing and potential referendum election after
receiving signed petitions.
The case involves
a piece of property that the Town Council had voted to sell. The point of the petitions was to hold a
referendum election so the Town would retain the property. The case was brought as a Rule 80B Appeal and
a Declaratory Judgment action. It explicitly
does not involve title to real estate. It was not so noted on the Complaint nor was that checked in the civil
cover sheet. Nonetheless, the plaintiffs obtained
a notice of lis pendens from the Clerk and recorded it in the Registry of
Deeds, describing the property at issue in the lawsuit. The Town of Brunswick filed a Motion to
Cancel the Lis Pendens arguing that a lis pendens under the law, 14 M.R.S. §
4455, only applied where title to real estate was specifically involved. The Court agreed and ruled that it was appropriate
to cancel the notice of lis pendens. The
Court noted that a lis pendens is a specific statutory procedure used to put
title examiners on notice of issues involving the title to real estate. It is not a general tool for advising the
world of the pendency of lawsuit, in an improper effort to discourage the sale
of real estate.
