Tag Archives: Legal Reform

NJCJI Joins State Bar, Coalition of Licensed Professionals in Support of Statute of Limitation Reform

July 28, 2017News, Top StoriesLegal Reform, New Jersey Bar Association, New Jersey Legislature, Statute of LimitationsNJCJI

Do you remember what you had for lunch yesterday? How about 2 weeks ago? How about 10 years ago? Even if you do remember, do you think you could come up with evidence – like witnesses or receipts – to back up your story, or do we just have to take your word for it?

The task of proving or defending any type of claim becomes more difficult as time passes. Witnesses become difficult to locate or pass away, records are lost or discarded, and memories fade. The ordinary “he-said-she-said” of litigation can turn into a one-sided allegation by a plaintiff that an event happened because the person says it happened, while the defendant lacks the ability to appear or muster facts that might disprove the allegation.

This is why reasonable statutes of limitations are important, and why we have joined the New Jersey State Bar Association and a broad coalition of other licensed professionals in support of A1982. The bill, which was introduced by Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto, would establish a uniform, two-year statute of limitations for licensed professionals.

Right now, there is no standard statute of limitations for claims against professionals. This causes confusion for both plaintiffs and defendants. Some plaintiffs have even missed their opportunity to file a malpractice suit because there was confusion over the applicable statute of limitations.

A1982 will promote justice, discourage unnecessary delay, and preclude the prosecution of stale or fraudulent claims.

Click here to learn more about this issue.

Click here to contact your legislators about this issue.

Save the Date

July 21, 2017News, Top StoriesLegal Reform, NJCJINJCJI

Mark your calendars and plan to join us on October 20 for our annual Fall Legal Reform Conference. This year’s event will be held at Bayer headquarters in Whippany from 8:30AM-1PM.

Bringing Common Sense To Our Legal System

June 29, 2017News, Top StoriesLegal Reform, New Jersey CourtsNJCJI

The news clips from this week make you sort of shake your head in disbelief.

But are they really that outrageous when you consider we have numerous state laws explicitly encouraging litigation when other means of dispute resolution would be quicker and more cost effective; poorly drafted statutes invite endless lawsuits over their interpretation; and antiquated policies limit the ability of our state to improve its legal climate?

Things have gotten so far off track, New Jersey has actually been called a “judicial hellhole.” At this point, there is nowhere to go but up, and the time is right to make changes, both legislatively and via judicial action.

Click here to see a list of the 11 common sense legal reforms New Jersey needs now.

Rayner Discusses NJ’s Status as a “Judicial Hellhole”

December 22, 2016News, Recent NewsArbitration, CFA, Legal Reform, New Jersey CourtsNJCJI

Growing Jury Verdicts Make Appeals Challenging

March 10, 2017News, Top StoriesAppeal Bond Cap, Legal ReformNJCJI

Certain New Jersey businesses have a hard time appealing verdicts against them because it is simply too expensive to do so. The cost comes not just from the expense of hiring attorneys, but from having to post a bond for the full amount of an adverse verdict before being allowed to appeal. In this day and age, eye-popping jury verdicts are not uncommon, but financial regulations and the nature of certain businesses makes it challenging to get funding for appeal bonds.

This issue was highlighted in a recent article in the business newspaper NJBIZ. The article points out that professional services firms, technology companies, and other businesses that lack hard assets they can use for appeal bond collateral are being priced out of the market for justice.

New Jersey is one of a handful of states that has taken action to make appeal bonds fairer, but only for the tobacco industry.

“We think the cap that industry enjoys should be extended to all businesses,” Rayner said. “Companies should be able to appeal up to the Supreme Court and their bank account shouldn’t be a limiting factor.”

An example Rayner believes demonstrates its potential impact is a 2007 case involving BDO International, an accounting firm that has a United States arm with an office in Woodbridge. The firm was held liable for $522 million in a Florida court ruling that was later overturned at the state’s Supreme Court level.

The firm, which had around 2,700 employees, was able to appeal with a bond capped at $50 million instead of the full $522 million due to legislation that had been enacted in Florida only the previous year.

Ralph Thomas, CEO and executive director at New Jersey Society of CPAs, said firms in similar situations in New Jersey would likely have been closing the doors instead of getting their day in court.

Click here to read the full article in NJBIZ (subscription required).

Click here to learn more about NJCJI’s effort to cap our state’s appeal bond for all defendants.

Legal Reform & Economic Development

March 3, 2017News, Top StoriesLegal ReformNJCJI

Balancing the state budget and funding all of the programs the state thinks are important is not an easy task. Revenue growth is steady, but slow, and we are already one of the highest taxed states in the nation, so there is little room to maneuver.

In order to attract business investment and spur economic growth, the government must look at innovative policies that improve the economy without depleting needed revenue. One promising solution is legal reform. Improving our state’s legal climate could improve our economy as well.

75% of attorneys at U.S. companies say a state’s lawsuit environment is likely to impact important business decisions at their company, including where to locate or expand.

States with predictable legal systems that discourage lawsuit abuse allow businesses to more accurately project what future legal expenses will be, allowing them to free up capital for business expansion and job creation.

Right now, the same attorneys that said a state’s lawsuit environment is likely to impact important business decisions ranked New Jersey’s legal climate as 38th in the nation. That is a drop of six spots from 2012, when the survey was last conducted.

We must work on improving our state’s legal climate and repairing our reputation.

When businesses fear lawsuits, they are overly cautious about launching new ventures and bringing innovative products to market.

New Jersey currently ranks 7th on the Kauffman Foundation’s Startup Activity Index, which is designed to measure new business creation activity and people engaging in business startup activity. Improving the state’s litigation climate would reassure entrepreneurs, inventors, and investors that New Jersey is open for business.

Small businesses are disproportionately impacted by litigation.

Contrary to popular belief, most companies being sued are not “deep pockets.” Lawsuits are frequently filed against small businesses. In fact, 43% of small business owners report having either been threatened with or involved in a civil lawsuit.

According to the U.S. government’s Small Business Administration, “The impact of litigation on businesses goes well beyond the purely financial impact of legal fees and damages. Most small business owners are invested personally in their businesses; litigation causes not just financial loss, but also substantial emotional hardship, and often changes the tone of the business.”

Legal reform is a win-win when it comes to the state budget.

In the short run, legal reform can provide an economic stimulus without loss of tax receipts or an increase in spending. In the long run, states with improved litigation climates see more economic activity, leading to increased revenue collections.

Click here to read NJCJI’s legal reform agenda, which includes several budget neutral tactics for improving our state’s reputation and economic outlook.

Christie Outlines Budget Priorities

March 3, 2017News, Top StoriesGovernor Christie, Legal Reform, New Jersey Courts, New Jersey LegislatureNJCJI

On February 28, Gov. Christie delivered his eighth and final budget address to a joint session of the legislature, officially kicking off negotiations on the state’s FY 2018 budget. The legislature’s focus for the next few months will essentially be on the budget, as it must be passed by July 1.

The Governor’s plan calls for $35.5 billion in State appropriations, a 2.6% increase over the fiscal year 2017 adjusted appropriation. The judicial branch would get $9.3 million more than last year under the Governor’s plan, bringing total spending on the third branch up to $747,755,000.

Click here to read the full Budget Summary from the Office of Management and Budget.

Several items on NJCJI’s policy agenda are budget neutral changes that would help to improve New Jersey’s economy and could reduce future spending by the courts.

“The correlation between legal reform and economic growth is clear,” said Marcus Rayner, President of the New Jersey Civil Justice Institute. “Civil justice reform is a way to capture the money we waste on lawyer’s fees and litigation costs – without raising taxes or cutting essential services.”

Top News Clips for the Week of January 14-20

January 20, 2017News, Recent NewsLegal Reform, Outrageous LawsuitsNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of January 14-20. Continue reading →

Bringing Common Sense To Our Legal System

January 20, 2017News, Top StoriesAppeal Bond Cap, Arbitration, CFA, Civil Justice, Class Actions, Expert Evidence, Fee Shifting, Judicial Independence, Judicial Selection, Legal Reform, Medical Liability, Regulation via Litigation, Settlement Trust Transparency, Statute of Limitations, TCCWNANJCJI

Our court system shouldn’t have to deal with suits over the length of sandwiches, amusement park rides that make kids too dizzy, and gassy co-workers. But it does.

Why? Because numerous state laws explicitly encourage litigation when other means of dispute resolution would be quicker and more cost effective; poorly drafted statutes invite endless lawsuits over their interpretation; and antiquated policies limit the ability of our state to improve its legal climate.

Things have gotten so far off track, New Jersey has been named one of the nation’s worst “judicial hellholes.” At this point, there is nowhere to go but up, and the time is right to make changes, both legislatively and via judicial action.

Click here to read our 2017 agenda, which is focused on bringing some common sense reform to our legal system.

Top News Clips for the Week of December 3-9

December 9, 2016News, Recent NewsClass Actions, Legal Reform, Trial LawyersNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of December 3-9. Continue reading →