Did your municipality execute a contract for the purchase of a fire truck and then find that contract price not honored? Many municipalities did, so many that several lawsuits have been filed to seek damages for the unanticipated price increases and unexplainable delays in delivery, claimed to be caused by collusive antitrust practices. Municipalities across the country have joined in an antitrust class action lawsuit alleging a coordinated effort to inflate the price of fire trucks sold to...

Welcome to 2026! We look forward to seeing you all at Connect351 , the Massachusetts Municipal Association’s annual trade show. We’ll be at Booth 1021 . Be sure to stop by and collect some Harrington Heep swag.       The new year is starting off quietly, with little in the way of municipal law updates, but we could not let the month go without a shout out to our own Christopher Brown and Andrew Bettinelli for their victory at arbitration over a union grievance. In Department of Labor...

Fairhaven officials are facing a difficult issue regarding their withdrawal from civil service. The Town became subject to civil service following a ballot vote in 1953. In 2023, the Fairhaven Town Meeting voted to remove its fire and police departments from civil service. It then appointed a Police Sergeant, bypassing two officers in 2024. Both of the bypassed officers appealed to the Civil Service Commission over the bypass. While employees with civil service status usually continue to...