By Tom Mooney
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- There may come a time when the two sides in the pension overhaul lawsuits sit down and negotiate but the judge in the case has not ordered the two sides to do so, said one of the lawyers Friday.
Carley Iafrate, representing retired state employees and public school teachers, said Superior Court Judge Sarah Taft-Carter "did raise the issue with us" but there has been no order for the two sides to sit down and talk.
"From the plaintiff's perspective we are open to it," Iafrate said.
The issue did come up during a chambers conference prior to a hearing in which Taft-Carter heard arguments on the state's request that the union lawsuits challenging the pension overhaul law be dismissed.