DOT commissioner won't be deposed in Conway rec path case

OSSIPEE — A Superior Court judge said he has “run out of patience” with discovery disputes and moved to close the record in a lawsuit brought by James Pietrangelo, denying a motion to reconsider and pushing the case toward summary judgment.

Judge Mark Attorri said Aug. 6 that the parties should prepare for summary judgment after Bartlett attorney James Pietrangelo, who appeared in court by video conference from Germany, declined the state's latest offer to make former New Hampshire Department of Transportation Commissioner Bill Cass available for a deposition later this month.

The ruling shifts the focus away from procedural disputes and toward the central legal question in the case: whether state officials lawfully authorized Conway's use of the former bypass corridor for construction of the recreation path.

"I've run out of patience," Attorri said as he explained his decision to end discovery, adding that the prolonged disputes had overshadowed the legal issues at the heart of the lawsuit. The judge also said he had never been convinced extensive discovery would be necessary to resolve the case.

Pietrangelo, who filed the lawsuit in May 2024, contends state officials exceeded their legal authority by allowing the town to use the former Conway bypass corridor without approval from the Legislature. The state denies those claims and argues it acted lawfully.

Attorri previously allowed the case to proceed in April 2025, finding Pietrangelo had standing as a taxpayer, as federal money was used to purchase bypass corridor land, but declined to order removal of the already-completed path, calling such a step unnecessary and potentially wasteful.

Much of the more recent litigation has centered on Pietrangelo's effort to depose Cass, who served as transportation commissioner when the state approved the project.

In May, Attorri ordered that Cass and former DOT Bureau of Right-of-Way Administrator Stephen LaBonte be made available for depositions within 60 days.

Pietrangelo scheduled Cass's deposition for May 21. State attorneys informed him beforehand that Cass was on a previously scheduled Appalachian Trail hiking trip and unavailable. Pietrangelo later filed a motion asking the court to hold Cass in contempt, arguing the former commissioner knowingly failed to comply with the court's order.

State attorneys disputed that characterization, saying they repeatedly offered alternative dates after Cass returned and later asked the court either to close discovery or extend the deadline solely to allow Cass's deposition to proceed.

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During Thursday's hearing, Attorri gave Pietrangelo one final opportunity to complete the deposition.

The judge asked whether Pietrangelo would proceed if the state made Cass available within the next few weeks.

"I'm standing by my objection," Pietrangelo replied.

Attorri then denied Pietrangelo's motion to reconsider the court's earlier order closing discovery and confirmed the case would proceed without Cass's deposition.

Pietrangelo argued he was not refusing to depose Cass but objecting to allowing the state to extend court-ordered deadlines after what he contends was Cass's failure to obey the original deposition order.

The judge, however, concluded it was time to move beyond the discovery dispute.

"We all felt this case should move more quickly," Attorri said, adding that discovery had "sort of driven the whole show here."

The lawsuit does not challenge the design of the recreation path itself. Instead, it asks the court to determine whether state officials had legal authority to authorize the town's use of the former bypass corridor and whether the approvals required by law were obtained.

The case has generated more than 150 docket entries since it was filed in May 2024, including motions to dismiss, motions for default judgment, discovery disputes, summary judgment motions and repeated requests for reconsideration. Jury selection, once scheduled for Aug. 31, has been canceled while Attorri considers the parties' competing motions for summary judgment.

If Attorri grants summary judgment, the case could be decided without a trial. If he concludes factual disputes remain, the litigation would continue.