Title 8
Courts and Civil Procedure — Courts

Chapter 8
District Court

R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-8-2

§ 8-8-2. Divisions.

(a) For the distribution of court business, the state is divided into four (4) divisions as follows:

(1) Second division. The second division consists of the city of Newport and the towns of Jamestown, Little Compton, Middletown, Portsmouth, and Tiverton. Appeals and transfers in cases arising in the enumerated cities and towns of the second division shall be transmitted by the clerk of the Second Division District Court to the clerk of the Newport County Superior Court.

(2) Third division. The third division consists of the city of Warwick and the city of Cranston and the towns of Coventry, East Greenwich, Foster, Glocester, Johnston, Lincoln, North Kingstown, North Providence, North Smithfield, Scituate, Smithfield, West Greenwich and West Warwick. Appeals and transfers in cases arising in the enumerated cities and towns of the third division shall be transmitted by the clerk of the Third Division District Court to the clerk of the Kent County Superior Court.

(3) Fourth division. The fourth division consists of the towns of Charlestown, Exeter, Hopkinton, Narragansett, New Shoreham, Richmond, South Kingstown, and Westerly. Appeals and transfers in cases arising in the enumerated cities and towns of the fourth division shall be transmitted by the clerk of the Fourth Division District Court to the clerk of the Washington County Superior Court.

(4) Sixth division. The sixth division consists of the cities of Central Falls, East Providence, Providence, Pawtucket, Woonsocket and the towns of Barrington, Bristol, Burrillville, Cumberland and Warren. Appeals and transfers in cases arising in the enumerated cities and towns of the sixth division shall be transmitted by the clerk of the Sixth Division District Court to the clerk of the Providence County Superior Court.

(b) In each division the place or places for holding court shall be designated by the chief judge.

(c) The district court shall have a seal for each of its divisions, which shall contain the words, “District court of the State of Rhode Island, division.”

History of Section.
P.L. 1969, ch. 239, § 4; P.L. 1975, ch. 56, § 1; P.L. 1981, ch. 61, § 1; P.L. 1990, ch. 240, § 1; P.L. 2011, ch. 80, § 1; P.L. 2011, ch. 85, § 1; P.L. 2021, ch. 77, § 3, effective June 23, 2021; P.L. 2021, ch. 78, § 3, effective June 23, 2021.