Ratcliffe v. Coastal Resources Management Counsel

OPINION

KELLEHER, Justice.

This fifteen-year-old controversy comes before us pursuant to three separate petitions for certiorari. The three petitions arise from a dispute between J. Richard and Edith Ratcliffe (the Ratcliffes) and the Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC). Prior to examining the legal issues before us, a recitation of the facts is in order. We shall address each of the three petitions as it arises in our narration of the facts.

In 1975 the Ratcliffes became owners-in-fee of a parcel of land situated in the town of Little Compton. The parcel is bounded on the west by the…