R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-4-10: Indexing of judgment records.

The superior court clerks shall make or cause to be made two (2) indexes to every current book and electronic storage system or other data compilation system of records of judgments in their offices, one, an alphabetical index of the names of all the plaintiffs, complainants, or petitioners, giving also the names of the defendants or respondents, in each case; and the other, an alphabetical index of the names of all the defendants or respondents, giving also the names of the plaintiffs, complainants, or petitioners, in each case.