Sign Pro v. Town of Southington Gets Potential Trial Date
Cases in the federal court system often move at a glacial pace, offering few opportunities for the public to know how they are developing. For that reason, those indications that do emerge merit special attention.
According to court documents, on November 2, Judge Stefan Underhill held a conference with the parties in the case of Sign Pro v. Town of Southington. That same day, he also issued a scheduling order that set a date for a jury trial. The notice for it reads: “Notice of e-filed calendar: this is the only notice counsel/the parties will receive. All persons entering the courthouse must present photo identification. Jury Selection is scheduled for 9/1/2027 at 9:00 AM in Courtroom One, 915 Lafayette Blvd., Bridgeport, CT before Judge Stefan R. Underhill. A Jury Trial is scheduled for 9/7/2027 at 9:00 AM in Courtroom One, 915 Lafayette Blvd., Bridgeport, CT before Judge Stefan R. Underhill and will continue each weekday through 10/1/2027. (Entered: 11/02/2026).”
What does this scheduling order mean? It may help to set it in context. Sign Pro and its owner Peter Rappoccio are suing the Town of Southington along with five current and former town officials over what it claims is a pattern of selective enforcement of local building and sign codes which hampered Sign Pro’s operations while giving its competitors a pass. The defendants have in turn countered that the town’s actions fell well within the law and that any difficulties Sign Pro encountered with its permits were the result of nothing more than ordinary bureaucratic back-and-forth.
The permitting issues began several years ago, with the earliest occurring in 2020. Sign Pro’s suit was first filed in April of 2022 and has been modified several times since. Chief among these modifications were additions to the list of defendants. While the original filing named the Town of Southington and Jeffrey Pooler, the suit was expanded to include former Town Manager Mark Sciota and former Town Council Chair Victoria Triano in October of 2022. Town Manager Alex Ricciardone and current Town Council Chair Paul Chaplinsky were added in June of 2025. Each addition has made the case more complex, since new depositions need to be taken and the pleadings updated.
All of these modifications kept the legal process from advancing. One step that was repeatedly postponed was the judge's consideration of motions to dismiss. Earlier this year, the defendants filed a motion for summary judgment – in effect, a request for the judge to dismiss Sign Pro’s case as having no merit. The extensive documentation that accompanied this request, and Sign Pro’s response, have offered the clearest view so far into the facts of the case, as well as the lines of accusation and defense.
Now the judge, who is still reviewing the motion and the reply, has reserved a spot on the calendar for a jury trial. Several attorneys consulted by the Outsider cautioned against reading too much into this move. One who was willing to speak on record, Attorney Brian Zaccagnino, said that the judge was merely trying to reserve space on the court calendar, should a trial prove necessary. Zaccagnino said that since there is normally a 75-day period separating a judge’s decision from a trial, a decision on the summary judgment motion can be expected to come out by mid-June at the latest, and perhaps earlier.
The key point is that, while a trial has been scheduled, Judge Underhill has not made any decision yet on whether to grant or deny the defendants’ request for summary judgment. Should he grant it, there will be no jury trail. Only if he denies all or part of the request will a trial be held. At the moment, then, the case is still alive.
Asked for comment on the development, Chaplinsky said that he was not currently able to provide comment on pending litigation.
Rappoccio’s response to the same question was, “We look forward to our day in court.”
