Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 9 Sec. 4176

  • Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
  • Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
  • Board: means , unless otherwise indicated, the Vermont Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board. See
  • Consumer: means the purchaser, other than for purposes of resale, of a new motor vehicle or lessee of a new motor vehicle, other than for the purposes of sub-lease, that has not been previously leased by another person, any person to whom such motor vehicle is transferred during the duration of an express warranty applicable to the motor vehicle, and any other person entitled by the terms of the warranty to enforce the obligations of the warranty, but "consumer" shall not include any governmental entity or any business or commercial enterprise that registers or leases three or more motor vehicles. See
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Fees: shall mean earnings due for official services, aside from salaries or per diem compensation. See
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.

§ 4176. Appeal from Board

(a)(1) The decision of the Board shall be final unless a motion for reconsideration is filed within 30 days of the consumer‘s receipt of decision accompanied by new evidence. The Board shall allow the opposing party to respond and may reconvene the hearing if deemed necessary. The decision shall then be final and shall not be modified or vacated unless, on appeal to the Superior Court a party to the arbitration proceeding proves, by clear and convincing evidence, that:

(A) the decision was procured by corruption, fraud, or other undue means;

(B) there was evident partiality by the Board or corruption or misconduct prejudicing the rights of any party by the Board;

(C) the Board exceeded its powers; or

(D) the Board refused to postpone a hearing after being shown sufficient cause to do so or refused to hear evidence material to the controversy or otherwise conducted the hearing contrary to the rules promulgated by the Board so as to prejudice substantially the rights of a party.

(2) An application to vacate or modify a decision shall be made within 30 days after delivery of a copy of the final decision to the applicant except that if predicated upon corruption, fraud, or other undue means, it may be made within 30 days after such grounds are known or should have been known. In the event a decision is confirmed, the party who prevails shall be awarded the attorney’s fees incurred in obtaining confirmation of the decision together with all costs.

(b) When a judgment of the Superior Court affirms a decision of the Board, permission of the presiding judge shall be required for review. Review may be conditioned upon the appellant paying appellee’s appellate attorney’s fees, giving security for costs, expenses, and financial loss resulting from the passage of time for review. (Added 1983, No. 211 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1985, No. 260 (Adj. Sess.), § 5; 1999, No. 18, § 32, eff. May 13, 1999.)