These rules shall not be construed to extend or limit the jurisdiction of the Superior Court or the venue of actions therein.
Rule 82.Jurisdiction and Venue Unaffected.
Current through February 2024 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 82 makes clear that adopting these procedural rules does not expand or narrow the Superior Court's jurisdiction or change where civil actions may properly be filed and heard.
Full Text of Rule 82
Amendment History
Rhode Island does not publish a per-rule amendment history inside the compiled rules text reproduced here. The text above is verified current through the source’s own February 2024 printing; for the underlying adopting orders and any later amendments, see the Rhode Island Judiciary’s compiled rules page.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 82 is a boundary-setting provision. It tells courts and litigants that nothing in the Rules of Civil Procedure changes what cases the Superior Court can hear or where within Rhode Island a case belongs.
Jurisdiction and venue come from statutes and constitutional provisions, not from procedural rules. By stating this directly, Rule 82 closes off any argument that a procedural rule somehow gave the court new power to hear a case, or shifted where a case must be brought.
The rule rarely comes up on its own in a case. It works in the background, protecting the line between rules that govern how a case proceeds and the separate law that governs whether the court may hear it at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Rule 82 change what cases the Superior Court can hear?
No. Rule 82 says the opposite — it states that adopting these procedural rules does not extend or limit the Superior Court's jurisdiction. Jurisdiction still comes from the statutes and constitutional provisions that define the court's authority.
Can a party use Rule 82 to argue that venue should move to a different county?
No. Rule 82 states that the rules do not affect venue either. Whatever law already governs where an action belongs continues to control; nothing in the procedural rules changes that.
Why does the rule need to say this at all?
Procedural rules govern how a case moves through court, not whether the court may hear it or where it must be filed. Rule 82 makes that separation explicit so no one can point to a rule about filing or scheduling as proof that jurisdiction or venue has changed.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Rhode Island Superior Court Rules of Civil Procedure (R.I. Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. 82). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Rhode Island (R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-6-2). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 8, 2026. ·
Official source
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