Brian Clifford Newberry

Email: Brian. [email protected] Phone: 401.406.3309 Fax: 401.406.3312 Primary Areas of Practice Professional Liability Complex Business & Commercial Litigation Construction Appellate Brian Newberry is a partner in the Providence office of Lewis Brisbois. Mr. Newberry specializes in commercial and financial services litigation, construction litigation, and professional practices representing primarily architects, engineers, accountants, and lawyers in addition to general insurance defense. He has extensive trial and appellate experience in both state and federal court in multiple jurisdictions. Career Highlights Represented winning plaintiff in breach of contract action labeled one of the five most significant verdicts of the year for 2002 by Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly. Lead counsel for plaintiff in a business dispute resulting in second highest jury verdict of the year in Rhode Island in 2003. In 2019 obtained a jury verdict on behalf of an architect accused of causing a $4 million fire. Secured a directed verdict in 2015 on behalf of an architect, a geotechnical engineer and an owners representative in a construction property damage claim after a three-and-a-half-week jury trial. Represented a geotechnical engineer and an owners representative in 2014 in a two-week jury trial resulting in a defense verdict. Represented a military contractor and obtained defense verdict in 2013 in a two-week jury trial in federal court in a tortious interference and business defamation claim brought by a competitor. Have obtained defense verdicts in multiple tort actions brought against design professionals in a variety of architectural and engineering disciplines. Co-lead counsel in 2002 in an American Arbitration Association arbitration in which client, a private business firm, achieved a $5 million award for fraud against a former computer vendor. Have tried numerous cases in multiple states and a variety of forums and argued multiple appeals before the Supreme Courts of Rhode Island and Delaware, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts and the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Publications Liability Among Joint Tortfeasors in Rhode Island, Rhode Island Bar Journal, Vol. 70, #2, Sept/Oct 2021. New Rhode Island Legislation Proposes to Alter Retention Process for A/E Firms on Public Projects, The Design and Construction Management Professional Reporter, June 2010. Contributing Author, Chapter 4: Architect-Engineer Contracting, Federal Government Construction Contracts, Editors: Adrian L. Bastianelli III, Andrew D. Ness, Joseph D. West, published by American Bar Association, 2010. Managing Your Practice in a Down Economy, co-authored with David Hatem, partner at Donovan Hatem LLP, STRUCTURE Magazine, December 2009. Court Decision Changes Class Action Landscape, Rhode Island Bar Journal, Vol. 53, No. 3, Nov/Dec 2004. Duplicative Litigation, Rhode Island Bar Journal, Vol. 52, No. 6, May/June 2004. Jurisdiction for Class Actions Problematic, Rhode Island Bar Journal, Vol. 52, No. 2, Sept/Oct 2003. Appealing the Issue of Certification, The National Law Journal, October 8, 2001. Taking the Dormant Commerce Clause Too Far: West Lynn Creamery, Inc. v. Healy, 114 S. Ct. 2205 (1994), 69 Temp. L. Rev. 1, 1996. Admissions State Bar Admissions Connecticut Massachusetts Rhode Island United States District Courts United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island United States Courts of Appeals United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Other Admissions United States Tax Court Associations American Arbitration Association (2018-Present) Member - Commercial, Construction, and Consumer Arbitration Panels Rhode Island State Representative, District 48 (North Smithfield / Burrillville), 2009-Present; House Minority Leader, 2011-2017 Education Temple University School of Law Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, 1996 University of Pennsylvania Bachelor of Arts in American History/Urban Studies, 1993 Choate Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, Connecticut 1989 Representative Matters Laccinole v. International Union of Police Associations, 21-cv-00240, (D. R. I. 2022) Antoniadis v. Basnight, 99 Mass. App. Ct. 172 (2020) John Rocchio Corp. v. PARE Engineering Corp., 201 A.2d 316 (R. I. 2019) Van Liew v. Kurland, 16-P-626 (Mass. App. Ct. May 4, 2017) LeLannic v. Smith, 16-P-1088 (Mass. App. Ct. April 25, 2017) Plante v. Stack, 109 A.3d 846 (R. I. 2015) Ira Green, Inc. v. Military Sales & Service Co., 2014 WL 7234962 (1st Cir. Dec. 19, 2014) Christie v. Harbor Towers Condo Trust I and II et al, 85 Mass. App. Ct. 1101 (2014) Beauregard v. Gouin, 66 A.3d 489 (R. I. 2013) Nationwide Property & Cas. Ins. Co. v. D. F. Pepper Construction, Inc., 59 A.3d 106 (R. I. 2013) Middleoak Insurance Company vs. Tri-State Sprinkler Corp. et al, 77 Mass. App. Ct. 336 (2010) Blue Coast, Inc. v. Suarez Corporation Industries, 870 A.2d 997 (R. I. 2005) Woloohojian v. Bogosian, 828 A.2d 522 (R. I. 2003) Lawton v. Nyman, 327 F.3d 30 (1st Cir 2003) Rose v. Firstar Bank, 819 A.2d 1247 (R. I. 2003) Bogosian v. Woloohojian Realty Corporation, 323 F.3d 55 (1st Cir. 2003) Capital Video Corporation v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, 311 F.3d 458 (1st Cir. 2002) Sea Fares American Café, Inc. v. Brick Market Place Associates, 787 A.2d 472 (R. I. 2001) BHG, Inc. v. F. A. F., Inc., 784 A.2d 884 (R. I. 2001) Rhode Island Charities Trust v. Engelhard Corp., 267 F.3d 3 (1st Cir. 2001) Donato v. Bank Boston, N. A., 110 F. Supp.2d 42 (D. R. I. 2000) Ross-Simons of Warwick, Inc. v. Baccarat, Inc., 217 F.3d 8 (1st Cir. 2000) Caranci v. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, 194 F. R. D. 27 (D. R. I. 2000) In re Petition for Review, 745 A.2d 769 (R. I. 2000) Crystal Restaurant Management Corp. v. Calcagni, 732 A.2d 706 (R. I. 1999) Back to Attorneys