The Rhode Island Supreme Court, in an unprecedented move, plans to Webcast hearings scheduled for May 15 on an appeal of the state’s high profile lead-paint case against three major corporations.

The Web address will be announced soon. The court plans to put one or two cameras in the courtroom so that anyone with a computer and access to the Internet will be able to view the hearings from anywhere in the world.

The Supreme Court generally does not televise its proceedings. But for a few other cases of intense interest the court has allowed a single pool camera to transmit images to an overflow room or to a group of TV stations. This will be the court’s first Webcast, using its own camera.

Chief Justice Frank J. Williams decided to allow the Webcast because of the strong nationwide interest in the casE, according to courts spokesman Craig Berke.

“There was widespread interest from attorneys all over the country who would otherwise have to attend if we couldn’t make this available,” Berke said. “There has been a lot of interest from attorneys, legal publications, brokers and investment companies.”

The case has attracted national attention since it was launched by former Atty. Gen. (now U.S. Sen.) Sheldon Whitehouse in 1999, as he described Rhode Island as the lead paint capital of the country. The state alleges that some 240,000 homes in Rhode Island are covered in lead-based paints that were sold here in the first half of the 20th century and that tens of thousands of Rhode Island children have been poisoned by the dust from the paints as they deteriorate.

A first trial ended with mistrial because the jury split on its vote. By the time a second trial got under way, in the fall of 2005, more than 120 lawyers had registered to represent what at that point were four defendant corporations. The court literally moved back the bar in the court room so there was more room for lawyers to appear before Superior Court Judge Michael A. Silverstein.

Extensive digital equipment was installed so evidence could be displayed on screens and real-time transcripts taken by both sides.

The case was being watched around the country because dozens of individuals, local governments and states had also sued the paint companies for similar reasons, but never won. Rhode Island’s case has stood out both because of the high level of poisonings here, because it’s the first victory against the companies and because the state made heavy use of a private law firm, Motley Rice LLC, which played a key role in winning huge settlements from the tobacco industry in the late 1990s.

Consequently, throughout the second trial there was always an audience of specialists representing the insurance industry, investors and the business media.

When the six-member jury found on Feb. 22, 2006, that three defendants created a public nuisance with their paints, the value of one, Sherwin Williams Co., dropped in a few hours on the stock market by 18 percent, or $1.3 billion.

The jury also found against two other companies, Millennium Holdings and NL Industries. The fourth defendant, Atlantic Richfield, was found not liable.

Since then the companies have filed thousands of pages of appeals and objections. All were turned down by Judge Silverstein. He has ordered both sides to submit plans for cleaning up the paints. The state’s proposal would cost between $1.37 billion and $3.74 billion.

In recent months, both sides have filed briefs arguing over the companies’ appeal to the Supreme Court.

The court has set aside May 15 for oral arguments. It has set a schedule down to the minute.

Each side gets one hour to argue over liability, and then 10 minutes for rebuttal. For compensatory damages, each side gets 10 minutes, with 2 minutes for rebuttal.

The same 10-minute time allotments have been set for arguments over Arco, over Silverstein’s contempt citations against Attorney General Patrick Lynch for criticizing the defendants outside the courtroom, and over the contingency fee promised to Motley Rice.

Many other entities have filed supporting briefs.

The attorneys general of Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Kentucky, Nevada, Maine, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia as well as the territory of Guam filed in support of Rhode Island. Most are Democrats, but there are three Republicans among them.

Their brief alleges that “lead pigment is silently poisoning hundreds of thousands, and perhaps millions, of children in States throughout the country every year.”

The paint companies are supported by the Rhode Island Manufacturers Association as well as such local companies as A.T. Cross Co., Technical Materials Inc., Walco Electric Co., Dryvit Systems Inc. and Amtrol Inc.

Their brief argues that upholding the nuisance verdict will adversely affect the business climate in Rhode Island and put the state out of step with practices elsewhere, creating a competitive disadvantage for local businesses.

Jack McConnell, a private lawyer who helped the state prosecute its case, said last week, “We are thrilled that the court is going to Webcast the arguments.”

McConnell said he has been approached by other states (whom he declined to identify) about pursuing similar litigation against the paint companies.

The companies declined to comment on the proceedings.

The court will use an employee who handles audio-visual equipment at the courthouse, so any additional costs from the Web site will be minimal, Berke said. It is working with a local communications consortium called OSHEAN.

plord@projo.com