An experienced litigator, Steve actively practices in the courts of Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts on a broad spectrum of cases, including healthcare liability, products liability and environmental litigation, labor and employment, education, and insurance bad faith. In addition, he advises clients on best practices for avoiding and managing litigation risk. Steve has also been called upon to draft legislation and to work with administrative bodies to craft regulations.
In addition to his litigation work, Steve devotes a significant energy to advising educational institutions and professionals on employment and labor matters, legal compliance issues, budgets and fiscal matters, special education disputes and discipline concerns.
Representative Accomplishments
- Obtained jury verdict in favor of an orthopedic surgeon in a case alleging permanent foot injuries.
- Secured a defense verdict for a large commercial tenant in a breach of contract case, convincing the jury that the plaintiff landlord had “waived” its right to collect nearly a million dollars in unpaid rent.
- Obtained summary judgment from the Rhode Island Superior Court in a personal injury case involving alleged exposure to asbestos on construction sites, arguing that the lawsuit was untimely under the Rhode Island Statute of Repose. (Cote v. E. Turgeon Const. Corp., 2006 WL 3004067.) As a consequence of this ruling, asbestos claims against building contractors in Rhode Island have all but stopped.
- Secured defense verdict on behalf of a national retailer in a personal injury lawsuit alleging a negligently designed floor plan.
- Secured defense judgment in a professional liability matter involving significant property damage to high value real estate.
- Obtained numerous arbitration awards in favor of the employer in wrongful termination arbitrations.
- Defeated a seven-figure property damage claim on behalf of a large commercial construction company in claims of alleged environmental contamination.
- Obtained $750,000 arbitration panel award on behalf of a carrier seeking to enforce a reinsurance treaty.
Education
University of Connecticut School of Law (J.D., with honors, 1996)
University of Connecticut (B.A., cum laude, 1990)
Bar Admissions
- Rhode Island
- Massachusetts
- Connecticut
- New York
- U.S. District Court, Massachusetts
- U.S. District Court, Rhode Island
- U.S. District Court, Connecticut
- U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit
- Professional Excellence in the Law, Rhode Island Monthly (2019)
Steve has lectured on various legal topics, including student discipline, and compliance with federal and state special education laws.
- Appointed by the Rhode Island Speaker of the House to the Special House Commission to Study All Education Hearings at the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
- Member, Defense Research Institute
- Member, American Trial Lawyers Association
- Member, Claims & Litigation Management Alliance
- Member, Rhode Island Bar Association
- Member, Connecticut Bar Association
- Volunteer, Primrose Hill School and Hampden Meadows School in Barrington, R.I.
- Mentor, Foster Forward, a non-profit that matches mentors with children in foster care
More About
Steve's grandfather – newspaper columnist Franklin Pierce Adams who wrote under the pen name of FPA – was a member of the famed Algonquin Roundtable, a group of New York City literati in the 1920s.