Plaintiff slipped and fell on black ice in a parking lot owned by private entities and leased in its entirety to the Borough of Caldwell. The lease clearly stated that maintenance of the property — including snow and ice removal — was the sole responsibility of the borough. Applying the New Jersey Supreme Courts recent … Read more
The State indicted Marias with a first-degree money laundering offense, under a theory that the “amount involved” exceeded $500,000. Marias moved to amend the indictment to charge only a third-degree offense, arguing, because he received $63,000 for the merchandise he was able to sell, that sum constituted the “amount involved.” The judge in the lower court … Read more
In this personal injury action, Plaintiff’s filed suit after the two-year statute of limitations, but sought protection under Section 108(c)(2) of the Bankruptcy Code. The trial court dismissed the case, but the Appellate Division reversed, distinguishing this case from Nativo v. Grand Union Co, 315 N.J. Super. 185 (App. Div. 1998). The Appellate Division held … Read more
Lawrence appealed from an order, which denied his petition for post-conviction relief. Lawrence had been confined to a jail work-release program as a result of his failure to pay child support. When he failed to return by curfew on two occasions, he was indicted on two counts of third-degree escape. Lawrence pleaded guilty to the … Read more
The NJ Attorney General’s Office’s Civil Rights Division brought suit under the Law Against Discrimination against defendant, a landlord, for turning down one prospective tenant because she was a Muslim and for making a negative comment to an undercover agent from the AG’s Office regarding her gender when she tried to rent an apartment from … Read more
In a fact-sensitive workers compensation matter, the workers comp judge was concerned that the petitioner would perjure himself if he testified, so the judge continued the matter. In the interim, motions were filed such that at the next hearing, without giving the petitioner a chance to testify, the judge dismissed the case without prejudice. Neither … Read more
The defendant in a divorce action was determined to be disabled by the Social Security Administration. Relying on Gilligan v. Gilligan, 428 N.J. Super. 69 (Ch. Div. 2012) held that the SSA’s determination alone as insufficient to prove a disability at trial. The Appellate Division abrogated Gilligan to the extent that it conflicts with Golian v. Golian, … Read more
The Court determined that it was appellate counsel’s obligation to review the New Jersey Courts website material concerning contested adoptions and Part II of the Court Rules covering appeals. Alternatively, counsel could have retained substitute counsel with expertise in this area. If counsel was unable to obtain sufficient knowledge or retain counsel with expertise, counsel … Read more
Plaintiff was granted a temporary restraining order and, after a contested hearing, was awarded a final restraining order. At issue was whether plaintiff could establish a “dating relationship” as a necessary element in receiving the FRO. The parties met at a gym, where the plaintiff worked and the defendant regularly exercised. They never went on … Read more
#CSL #SocialMedia # 1stAmendment #MegansLaw #StrictScrutiny #Overbroad In what surely is a preview of a New Jersey (maybe even SCOTUS) case, the Appellate Division determined that a provision prohibiting a parolee from accessing social media online as part of a parole provision under Community Supervision for Life violates the 1st Amendment, as it is overbroad … Read more