Rhode Island General Laws 10-5-2. Procedure
(a) A court having jurisdiction over a defendant or his or her assets, including his or her personal estate or real estate, may authorize a plaintiff to attach the defendant’s assets, or any part thereof, after hearing on a motion to attach, notice of which has been given to the defendant as provided in this section. At the time of the commencement of the action, or at any time thereafter, a plaintiff must file a motion in the court having jurisdiction for authority to attach the defendant’s assets, including his or her personal or real estate, and the attachment motion must state the day, time and place of hearing and a copy must be served by the process server on the defendant or by leaving it at his or her last and usual place of abode with some person there at least five (5) days before the fixed date of hearing.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 10-5-2
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
- real estate: may be construed to include lands, tenements, and hereditaments and rights thereto and interests therein. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-10
- town: may be construed to include city; the words "town council" include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9
- Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
(b) If the defendant does not reside in the state, service of the attachment motion shall be made upon him or her by mailing a copy of the motion to attach, by certified mail, to his or her last known address and, if service is made in this manner, the plaintiff or his or her attorney must attach the sender’s receipt to an affidavit of compliance with this section by the plaintiff or his or her attorney and filing it with the case in the court.
(c) If the plaintiff after diligent search and by affidavit avers that he or she does not know of the defendant’s address, service on the defendant of the motion to attach may after order of the court be made by publication in some public newspaper, once, published in the town, city or county where the defendant’s assets are situated. If there is no public newspaper published in the town, city or county where the defendant’s assets are situated, then in some public newspaper published in the city of Providence. Provided, however, that in all actions where the plaintiff’s claim against the defendant has been reduced to a judgment, the defendant’s assets, including his or her personal estate and real estate, may be attached and may be subject to trustee process as set out in chapter 17 of this title in the same action in which the judgment has been entered.
History of Section.
C.P.A. 1905, § 510; G.L. 1909, ch. 299, § 14; G.L. 1923, ch. 349, § 14; G.L. 1938, ch. 546, § 1; G.L. 1956, § 10-5-2; P.L. 1965, ch. 55, § 50; P.L. 1973, ch. 109, § 1; P.L. 1984, ch. 357, § 2; P.L. 1986, ch. 320, § 1; P.L. 1997, ch. 326, § 95.