OUR GROWING EXPERTISE

Seth Barnett

Seth Barnett comes to MEEB as a partner with almost two decades of civil litigation experience representing clients in the areas of land use and zoning, premises liability, employment and civil rights law, construction and condominium law, and a wide variety of disputes and permitting decisions involving state and local governmental boards and commissions.

Prior to joining MEEB, Seth spent more than 15 years litigating matters on behalf of municipalities, property owners, school districts, employees and officials across the Commonwealth in civil rights and constitutional matters of public significance often stemming from zoning disputes, First Amendment free speech claims, harassment, whistleblower and retaliation claims, and allegations of due process and equal protection violation.

In 2017, Seth prevailed before a Barnstable County jury in the first nationally-reported case to reach trial and address the question as to whether the operation of wind turbines (and the alleged sound emitted by the turbines) constituted a nuisance to nearby property owners and whether they caused a series of alleged health problems the abutters claimed to experience. Seth has also obtained favorable results, jury verdicts and reported decisions in both state and federal courts in highly-publicized disputes concerning:

1. the impact of a residential development on a drinking water supply;

2. the installation of large-scale solar farms in residential areas;

3. the efforts to prevent the nearby construction of a private power plant;

4. the design of municipal water and sewer projects,

5. the impact of construction projects on residential properties and applicability of wetlands regulations;

6. challenges to Conservation Commission enforcement orders;

7. the challenge to Building Inspector’s opinion as to the applicability of zoning bylaws to property;

8. a condo unit owner’s action alleging unlawful taking of unit without just compensation; and

9. liability of property owners for tortious conduct of third parties.

Since 2013, Seth has been recognized as a Super Lawyer by New England Super Lawyers magazine, and most recently since 2019, for his civil rights defense work.