Kilgore v. R. J. Grosso Enterprises, Inc.

This case raises questions concerning the correctness of a trial judge’s action in holding a third party defendant legally responsible for damages (including punitive damages awarded pursuant to M.G.L. c. 93A), in a trial context, where the third party plaintiff (original defendant) neither alleged a claim for punitive damages nor asserted claims of a “willful violation” against the third party defendant until the close of the trial in the direct action with the plaintiff.

The facts of record which generated this issue are as follows:

The plaintiffs, Erwin T. and Erma S. Kilgore, brought an…