"Friends of Falmouth Wind" Doctrine of Laches

Falmouth Wind Turbines Doctrine of Latches

Falmouth Town Counsel Frank Duffy said according to a local news media outlet: "Wind 1 and Wind 2 do not share the same legal status and therefore will not share the same fate" and “Wind 2 is eligible to be relocated in Falmouth with a special permit from the Planning Board.”

The Town of Falmouth claimed that under the Doctrine of Laches a legal doctrine that the abutters to the Falmouth Wind Turbine II took too long to seek a legal remedy and they have no rights.

Barnstable Superior Court Judge Cornelius Moriarty issued the order to shut down Falmouth's Wind 1 and Wind 2 on June 20, 2017.

The judge denied the appeal brought by Falmouth selectmen against the Zoning Board of Appeals years before. (2014-2015)

The Falmouth Zoning Board of Appeals had found the turbines to be a "nuisance " several years before. (2014-2015)

The "Friends of Falmouth Wind" filed an appeal 5 months too late after the June 20, 2017 decision to shut down the wind turbines. Judge Moriarty ruled the "Friends of Falmouth Wind" have no standing and filed the appeal too late.

The Friends as of January 2018 have filed an appeal in the Massachusetts Appeals Court Docket # 2018-P-0104

The wind turbine litigation has been going on since 2010 to the most recent in 2014 through June 20, 2017. The Friends of Falmouth Wind waited far to long to get involved.

On July 10, 2017, Susan Moran, the chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen, said:"It's time to put the matter behind us and move forward." .

The Town of Falmouth should assert the Doctrine of Laches in the Massachusetts Appeals Court hearing in October 2018.

The doctrine of laches is based on the maxim that "equity aids the vigilant and not those who slumber on their rights. In other words, the "Friends of Falmouth Wind" waited years to get involved in the wind turbine litigation.

They waited to long they were asleep.