RI · rules
R.I. Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. 17
Parties Plaintiff and Defendant — Capacity
(a) Real Party in Interest.
Every action shall be prosecuted in the name of the real party in interest. An
executor, administrator, guardian, bailee, trustee of an express trust, a party with
whom or in whose name a contract has been made for the benefit of another, or a
party authorized by statute may sue in that person's own name without joining the
party for whose benefit the action is brought; and when a statute so provides, an
action for the use and benefit of another shall be brought in the name of the state. An
insurer who has paid all or part of a loss may sue in the name of the assured to whose
right it is subrogated. No action shall be dismissed on the ground that it is not
prosecuted in the name of the real party in interest until a reasonable time has been
allowed after objection for ratification of commencement of the action by, or joinder
or substitution of, the real party in interest; and such ratification, joinder, or
substitution shall have the same effect as if the action had been commenced in the
name of the real party in interest.
(b) Capacity to Sue or Be Sued. The capacity of an individual, including one
acting in a representative capacity, and of a partnership or other unincorporated
association to sue or be sued shall be determined by the law of this state. The capacity
of a corporation to sue or be sued shall be determined by the law under which it was
organized, unless some statute of this state provides to the contrary.
(c) Infants or Incompetent Persons. Whenever an infant or incompetent person
has a representative, such as a general guardian, conservator, or other like fiduciary,
the representative may sue or defend on behalf of the infant or incompetent person.
If an infant or incompetent person does not have a duly appointed representative, the
infant or incompetent person may sue by a next friend or by a guardian ad litem. The
court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for an infant or incompetent person not
otherwise represented in an action or shall make such other order as the court deems
proper for the protection of the infant or incompetent person.
Provenance
- Source
- courts.ri.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-24
- Edition
- 2026-09-24
- Content hash
5733bc5ac39b0c52c6c5581fe3ee573a35545cb0626740bda9b1f92fe1a04aa4
The link goes to the issuing authority’s own document — the one we read to produce this record. Where a source publishes whole titles rather than sections, your browser may need a moment to jump to the provision.
Unofficial copy of government-published law, reproduced from official sources with full provenance. Not an official publication; verify against official sources before relying on it in a filing. Records in the 'guidance' corpus, and only that corpus, are sub-regulatory (interpretive guidelines, survey procedures) and are not binding law. Validity bounds follow each jurisdiction's declared temporalBasis.