New Jersey
Civil Justice Institute

  • Helpful Links
  • Contact Us
  • HOME
  • ABOUT US
    • Our Mission
    • Membership
    • Our Staff
  • ISSUES & ADVOCACY
  • OUR WORK IN THE COURTS
  • NEWSROOM
  • GET INVOLVED

Fairness. Justice.
Rule of Law.

Tag Archives: New Jersey Courts

Top News Clips for the Week of March 10-16

March 16, 2018News, Recent NewsGovernor Murphy, New Jersey Courts, Outrageous LawsuitsNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for March 10-16.

 

Murphy Proposes ‘Fiscally and Morally’ Balanced Budget, with $1.7B in New Tax Revenue

Ryan Hutchins | Politico New Jersey

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Tuesday proposed the largest state budget in history, saying he’ll deliver on his liberal agenda by raising $1.7 billion in new tax revenue, primarily by rolling back a small cut in the state sales tax, generating new revenue off the backs of millionaires and legalizing the sale of recreational marijuana.

Read more.

 

 

How Phil Murphy’s Budget Proves You Elected a Liberal Governor

Samantha Marcus | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

You can call it the very model of a modern progressive budget. From tax hikes on New Jersey’s wealthiest to tax credits for the working poor and legalization of marijuana, Gov. Phil Murphy’s first state budget proposal leaves virtually no progressive stone unturned.

Read more.

 

 

Business Community has Concerns About Murphy Budget

Anjalee Khemlani | ROI

While some attendees walked away tight-lipped from the governor’s first budget address, others were optimistic that Gov. Phil Murphy has taken a step in the right direction for the state. The tax-heavy budget plan for fiscal year 2019 is a $2.7 billion increase from the previous year and includes some initiatives that could shock the economic system in the state.

Read more.

 

 

County Bar Associations Back in Appointments Fold in Reworked Hughes Compact

David Gialanella and Charles Toutant | New Jersey Law Journal

Returning to what many in the profession said was an important tradition, Gov. Phil Murphy and the New Jersey State Bar Association have executed an agreement that provides for county bar associations to have a formal role in evaluating potential judicial and prosecutorial nominees.

Read more.

 

 

Lawsuit Saying Home Depot Tricks Buyers of 4X4 Lumber is Deep-Sixed

Jonathan Stempel | Reuters

A federal judge on Monday dismissed a lawsuit accusing Home Depot Inc of deceiving shoppers about the size of its four-by-four lumber. U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman in Chicago rejected plaintiff Mikhail Abramov’s claim that the largest U.S. home improvement retailer should be held liable for selling lumber as 4 inches thick by 4 inches wide, when the dimensions were actually 3-1/2 inches by 3-1/2 inches.

Read more.

 

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news.

 

Murphy Outlines His Budget Priorities

March 16, 2018News, Top StoriesGovernor Murphy, New Jersey CourtsNJCJI

On March 13, Gov. Murphy delivered first budget address to a joint session of the legislature, giving the state its first good idea of his priorities now that he is in office. From now until July 1, the legislature will be focused on passing a budget built on the foundation Murphy laid.

 

 

The Governor’s plan calls for $37.4 billion in State appropriations, a $2.7 billion increase over FY2018, which makes this the largest state budget in New Jersey history. The increase in spending is to be funded by economic growth and $1.7 billion in new tax revenue. Murphy recommends increasing the sales tax to 7%, implementing a millionaires’ tax, and legalizing the sale of recreational marijuana.

 

The judicial branch would get $10 million less than last year under the Governor’s plan. This will undoubtedly cause some handwringing and perhaps lead to increased filing fees as the courts struggle to pay for bail reform and the move to electronic filing.

 

Although there is already a lot of disagreement over Murphy’s proposed budget, there is a wide-spread, bi-partisan recognition that it’s time to make some changes that will rev up New Jersey’s economic engine, and foster a “stronger and fairer” economy. Some thoughtful tweaks to our legal system could improve our state’s legal reputation, and stimulate economic growth without raising taxes or increasing spending.

 

Additional Resources

FY2019 Budget in Brief from the Office of Management and Budget

Governor Murphy’s Press Release

Full Text of Governor Murphy’s Speech

 

Murphy Proposes ‘Fiscally and Morally’ Balanced Budget, with $1.7B in New Tax Revenue

Ryan Hutchins | Politico New Jersey

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Tuesday proposed the largest state budget in history, saying he’ll deliver on his liberal agenda by raising $1.7 billion in new tax revenue, primarily by rolling back a small cut in the state sales tax, generating new revenue off the backs of millionaires and legalizing the sale of recreational marijuana.

Read more.

 

How Phil Murphy’s Budget Proves You Elected a Liberal Governor

Samantha Marcus | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

You can call it the very model of a modern progressive budget. From tax hikes on New Jersey’s wealthiest to tax credits for the working poor and legalization of marijuana, Gov. Phil Murphy’s first state budget proposal leaves virtually no progressive stone unturned.

Read more.

 

Business Community has Concerns About Murphy Budget

Anjalee Khemlani | ROI

While some attendees walked away tight-lipped from the governor’s first budget address, others were optimistic that Gov. Phil Murphy has taken a step in the right direction for the state. The tax-heavy budget plan for fiscal year 2019 is a $2.7 billion increase from the previous year and includes some initiatives that could shock the economic system in the state.

Read more.

 

Top News Clips for February 24-March 2

March 2, 2018News, Recent NewsGovernor Murphy, Medical Liability, New Jersey CourtsNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for February 24-March 2.

 

7 Things We Heard About Jersey’s Hot Topics During 2018’s Strangest Political Event

Matt Arco and Brent Johnson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Where can you find handshakes, business cards, liquor shots, and arguments about legalized marijuana and gun control all in one place? The annual “Chamber Train.” Thursday was the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce’s 81st “Walk to Washington,” in which an eclectic group of lawmakers, lobbyists, and business executives packed 13 train cars that barreled toward Washington D.C. for a dinner with Gov. Phil Murphy and the state’s members of Congress. It’s one of the Garden State’s weirdest political traditions.

Read more.

 

Here’s Why Big Changes Will Take More Than 100 Days in New Jersey

Donald Scarinci | Observer

“The First 100 Days” measuring stick is meaningless and irrelevant for Gov. Phil Murphy’s ambitious agenda. The Murphy “to-do” list is full of significant policy reforms, including raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, providing mandatory sick leave, tightening gun laws, restoring funding for women’s health, legalizing marijuana, fully funding schools and removing barriers to voting.

Read more.

 

Court Says No Relief From Affidavit of Merit Without Effort at Compliance

Charles Toutant | New Jersey Law Journal

A lawyer’s failure to file an affidavit of merit in a nursing malpractice suit is not an extraordinary circumstance warranting relief from filing deadlines, a New Jersey appeals court has ruled.

Read more.

 

Second Toddler Enjoys Lawyer-Themed Birthday Party

Kevin Underhill | Lowering the Bar

Okay, it was weird enough that this happened once. See “Toddler Enjoys Lawyer-Themed Birthday Party” (July 31, 2015). Also, that was Louisiana, and people are … different there. But now we have a second and, apparently, completely unrelated example of this phenomenon, hundreds of miles away in Greenville, South Carolina.

Read more.

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news.

 

NJCJI Files Brief on the Importance of Judicial Gatekeeping

February 23, 2018News, Top StoriesExpert Evidence, New Jersey Courts, New Jersey Supreme CourtNJCJI

NJCJI's Brief In re Accutane LitigationJudicial gatekeeping on expert testimony is often discussed as a concern about junk science – with an implication that anything not plainly lacking in scientific basis is a mere question of persuasiveness that should therefore go to the jury. The New Jersey Appellate Division recently took that concept to its extreme conclusion, holding that whenever a well-credentialed expert relies on some sort of scientific data and can offer an explanation for his conclusions, that testimony must be admitted, no matter the methodological flaws. Those flaws go merely to the strength of the testimony, the panel determined, and weaknesses can be exposed on cross examination and countered by other experts. As a result, the trial judge’s studied judgment to bar flawed expert testimony in the ongoing In re Accutane Litigation was reversed.

 

In a brief filed this week in the New Jersey Supreme Court, we argue that focus on “junk science” is misplaced, and in fact has it backwards. Identifying obvious “junk science” may be relatively easy for a jury. Where judicial gatekeeping is most critical, and where flawed expert testimony is most dangerous, is rather where a well-credentialed expert presents an interpretation of the underlying data based on flawed methodology that jurors are ill-suited to evaluate.

 

What Do Juries Do Best?

Juries function best when evaluating credibility of ordinary witnesses, aided by the adversarial process. Inconsistencies can be revealed through cross-examination; erroneous and false testimony can be countered by opposing witnesses. Jurors can then arrive at their own conclusion as to whether the stop light was red or green.

 

But jurors are more easily misled when presented with competing interpretations of scientific data. Studies demonstrate that jurors struggle to make methodology-based distinctions when evaluating expert testimony. Juries presume the legitimacy of admitted evidence, and do not reliably distinguish between low and high-quality evidence. And the adversarial process does not effectively assist jurors in recognizing flaws in expert testimony, in part because jurors lack the opportunity to delve into the underlying studies to make their own critical evaluations.

 

What Judges Do Better

Judges, by contrast, have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the relevant studies and make meaningful inquiries into the methodological soundness of proposed testimony. Especially in the case of MCL judges, they even have the opportunity to develop some familiarity with the type of scientific and technical disputes that occur frequently in medical causation cases.  Of course, as part of that evaluation, judges must also justify their decision – and their analysis is more readily reviewable on appeal, further enhancing both accuracy and predictability.

 

The focus on “junk science” therefore gets it precisely backwards. A standard that would permit well-credentialed experts to offer “plausible explanations” would eliminate judicial gatekeeping in those cases where jurors are least equipped to assess scientific validity and methodological soundness, and where judges’ comparative advantage in evaluating complex scientific theories highest.

 

The solution is to adopt a standard that is not limited to a screen for well-qualified experts opining on scientific data, but that requires rigorous judicial scrutiny of the analytical process itself, and that provides trial court judges reliable guidance in their gatekeeping responsibilities. Adopting the Daubert standard to expressly align New Jersey courts with the prevailing standard in federal courts and vast majority of other state courts would provide New Jersey judges with effective guidance on thorny methodological issues and ensure predictable and robust judicial gatekeeping in New Jersey state courts.

 

Click here to read NJCJI’s brief. Thank you to Shalom Stone of Stone Conroy LLC for his work on this case on NJCJI’s behalf.

 

Top News Clips for February 3-9

February 9, 2018News, Recent NewsFood Law, New Jersey Courts, Outrageous LawsuitsNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for February 3-9.

 

N.J. Judges Could Get $24K Pay Raise

Matt Arco | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

A plan to give hundreds of judges and top officials in New Jersey pay raises is back. Except this time, it’s not tied to a book deal for Chris Christie. The bill (S1229) cleared its first hurdle Monday when approved by a state Senate panel. The measure would gives judges and county prosecutors a $24,000 pay increase over three years and let members of the governor’s cabinet earn the same paycheck as Gov. Phil Murphy: $175,000 — a $34,000 jump from their current salaries.

Read more.

 

Concert Booker Not Liable for Patron’s Injury

Walter Olson | Overlawyered

“The Alabama Supreme Court says a man can’t go forward with his lawsuit against a company involved in booking a death metal concert where he was injured.” The plaintiff said he was thrown to the ground during the Mobile event and suffered serious spinal injuries. “The decision says ICM Partners received a $250 commission for booking the band but had no other involvement.”

Read more.

 

Food Class Action Settlement Returns No Money to Class Members

U.S. Chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform

A class action settlement will force Bumble Bee Foods to change the wording on its canned salmon product while giving no money to class members… As part of the settlement, the company will change the wording from “smoked” to “smoke-flavored.” In addition to changing the wording of the package, Bumble Bee will also pay up to $85,000 for fees. Class members will not get a monetary benefit from the settlement.

Read more.

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news.

 

Top News Clips for January 27-February 2

February 2, 2018News, Recent NewsFood Law, New Jersey Courts, Outrageous Lawsuits, Statute of LimitationsNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for January 27-February 2.

 

Just in Time for the Super Bowl, a Look at the NFL’s Offbeat Cases

Randy Maniloff | New Jersey Law Journal

Super Bowl LII is upon us. In fact, the pre-game show has already started. And while football is the national pastime, litigation is a close second. So what better way to deal with any lull in the action than a discussion of the substantial number of lawsuits that surround the National Football League, its players and fans.

Read more.

 

 

Orange Juice Decision Shows the True Silliness of Many Food Lawsuits

U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Legal Reform

Last week, a New Jersey judge “squeezed out” lawsuits in multidistrict litigation alleging that Tropicana falsely represented its orange juice as “all-natural.”

Read more.

 

 

Bridgegate Aide Tells 3rd Circ. Open Road Not A Civil Right

Jody Godoy | Law360

A former aide to ex-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie urged the Third Circuit on Tuesday to overturn her convictions in the Bridgegate criminal case, arguing that drivers don’t have a civil right to traffic-free travel and that prosecutors have no business second-guessing government officials.

Read more.

 

 

Accutane Suits Rightly Held Time-Barred, Appellate Division Rules

Michael Booth | New Jersey Law Journal

A New Jersey appeals court handed Hoffmann-La Roche a minor victory on Tuesday when it affirmed a trial judge’s ruling that four plaintiffs in the Accutane litigation blew the statute of limitations in filing their product liability lawsuits.

Read more.

 

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news.

 

Report Offers Insight Into Murphy’s Legal Agenda

February 2, 2018News, Top StoriesGovernor Murphy, New Jersey CourtsNJCJI

NJ State HouseGov. Murphy ran on a progressive, social-justice-orientated agenda, but as is the trend right now, offered few details on specific policy proposals. Until we hear Murphy’s budget address, and see his proposed budget, much of his agenda remains a mystery. However, we are getting some clues about what his legal policy plans are based on the Law & Justice report from his transition committee.

 

It will be either February 27 or March 13 when Gov. Murphy lays out his policy priorities for the coming year in his first budget address. The exact date is still unknown because state law requires the budget to be delivered to the Legislature on or before the fourth Tuesday in February, but lawmakers traditionally pass a bill relaxing that date during the first year of a new governor’s term. Until that time, any insight we have into the governor’s plans for the legal system comes from his transition committee’s report on law and justice.

 

The report, which was crafted by his 500+ member transition team, is one of 14 such reports, each focusing on a different issue area. Murphy is under no obligation to implement or even accept the recommendations in the reports, but they give a sense of what the administration aspires to.

 

The Law & Justice report focuses mostly on social justice and criminal justice reform, but it also talks a bit about the relationship between the governor and the judiciary. This is a touchy subject in the New Jersey legal community because former Gov. Christie bucked tradition and appointed new people to the state’s Supreme Court instead of re-appointing sitting justices. This caused a rift between Christie and Senate leaders that left one seat on the high court vacant for years, and overloaded the dockets of several lower courts who had to make do without a full complement of judges.

 

Things were smoothed over after Christie reappointed Chief Justice Rabner instead of naming someone new, but there is still tension in the air. And there probably will be until we see what happens when Justice Patterson’s initial appointment expires later this year. The report reflects this uncertainty in its fourth priority: “Restore the relationship of respect between the Governor and an independent judiciary.”

 

It specifically recommends that Murphy:

 

  • Reaffirm the long-standing historical practices of prior New Jersey governors of re-nominating for tenure judges and justices appointed by predecessor governors as long as they are objectively deemed qualified.
  • Reaffirm the long-standing historical practices of ensuring that no more than 4 members of the Supreme Court are of the same political party, and nominating judges to the Superior Court and other courts equally from the two major political parties.
  • Reaffirm the Judicial Compact Procedures for the Relationship between the Governor and the New Jersey State Bar Association (commonly known as the “Hughes Compact”), under which the Bar Association has a nonpartisan role in reviewing judicial and prosecutorial candidates.
  • Immediately upon taking office, develop a process for soliciting judicial candidates whose background and experience reflect the diversity of the communities that they will serve.
  • Examine judicial salaries, which are necessary to attract qualified candidates.

 

We agree that judges should be qualified and have diverse backgrounds and pre-bench experiences. A fair legal system depends upon independent, capable judges at the trial, intermediate appellate, and Supreme Court levels.

 

While there is nothing wrong with renewing the Hughes Compact and encouraging the governor to consult with the New Jersey State Bar Association, we would remind the governor that it is not mandatory for lawyers in our state to join the NJSBA. There are a wide variety of legal organizations in our state that he can work with, including the New Jersey Civil Justice Institute.

 

Our organization is also available to advise policy makers about how to address the variety of other issues in the report, like equal pay for women. As NJCJI has repeatedly pointed out to policy makers, it is possible to advance many policy goals without creating new ways and reasons to sue businesses.

 

It is also of note that the last priority in the law and justice report is: “Participate in litigation to protect New Jersey’s residents from harmful national policies.” The report recommends the state join a laundry list of lawsuits other states have brought against the federal government. It goes on recommend that the Attorney General “[create] a Solicitor General position within the Department of Law and Public Safety to oversee the State’s litigation in federal and state courts of appeal and the U.S. Supreme Court and possibly to oversee affirmative litigation against the federal government.”

 

We will look for evidence of these priorities in Murphy’s budget, and in any legislation he champions. And we, along with the rest of the state’s legal community, will be watching to see what happens when Patterson’s term expires.

 

Top News Clips for December 30-January 5

January 5, 2018News, Recent NewsBusiness Climate, New Jersey Courts, New Jersey Legislature, Outrageous LawsuitsNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for December 30-January 5.

 

Update on New Jersey’s Legal Landscape

Jim Pytell | New Jersey Business Magazine

The year 2017 will be remembered for change. From federal changes after the first full year of the Trump administration, to the gubernatorial election of Phil Murphy and the proposed changes he will make when he is officially sworn in as the state’s 56th governor this month.

Read more.

 

Key New Jersey Cases To Watch In 2018

Jeannie O’Sullivan | Law360

High-profile New Jersey cases are poised for key developments in 2018, when the U.S. Supreme Court may decide on the state’s bid to legalize sports betting and the Third Circuit ponders appeals by former public officials facing prison for their roles in the infamous George Washington Bridge lane closures.

Read more.

 

9 Reasons You Can Expect 2018 To Be Another Crazy Year In Jersey Politics

Jonathan D. Salant | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

After back-to-back big political years that saw Donald Trump elected president and Phil Murphy elected governor, what will 2018 do for an encore? Anyone who knows Jersey politics will expect something crazy to happen. Or lots of crazy things to happen because, well … it’s Jersey politics.

Read more.

 

Christie Bridgegate Lawyer Tapped As Interim U.S. Attorney For N.J.

Thomas Moriarty | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has tapped Craig Carpenito, a white-collar defense and securities lawyer who represented outgoing Gov. Chris Christie in matters related to the “Bridgegate” lane-closure scandal, as New Jersey’s top federal prosecutor on an interim basis.

Read more.

 

Ex-Indianapolis Employee Files ‘Chronic Body Odor’ Lawsuit

AP

Indianapolis is being sued by a former courts official who alleges that she was fired after she installed air freshers to combat a co-worker’s body odor.

Read more.

 

Securities Suit Filings at Historically High Levels During 2017

Kevin LaCroix | The D&O Diary

More securities class action lawsuits were filed in 2017 than in any year since 2001, in significant part because of the substantial number of federal court merger objection lawsuit filings during the year. But even disregarding the merger suits and looking only at the traditional securities lawsuits, the number of lawsuit filings was at the highest level since at least 2004.  While the elevated numbers of lawsuit filings is noteworthy, it is the litigation rate – that is, the number of securities suits relative to the number of public companies – that is most significant. According to my estimate, the litigation rate during 2017 was at all-time record levels.

Read more.

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news.

 

Top News Clips for December 9-15

December 15, 2017News, Recent NewsEmployment Law, Expert Evidence, Medical Liability, New Jersey Courts, New Jersey Supreme CourtNJCJI

A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for December 9-15.

 

Murphy Picks Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir Grewal for Attorney General

Nicholas Pugliese | NorthJersey.com

Gov.-elect Phil Murphy on Tuesday announced the Bergen County prosecutor as his nominee for state attorney general and vowed that his pick will lead the fight against the Trump administration on issues ranging from health care to voting rights and the environment.

Read more.

 

 

NJ Justices Say Conference Needed Over Med Mal Testimony

Jeannie O’Sullivan | Law360

The New Jersey Supreme Court reinstated a medical malpractice lawsuit against Newark Beth Israel Medical Center that had been tossed over the late submission of an expert witness’ statement, ruling on Thursday that the parties had been entitled by law to a conference to discuss any concerns about the testimony.

Read more.

 

 

NJ Justices Nix Worker’s Contract Barring 3rd-Party Suits

Jeannie O’Sullivan | Law360

The New Jersey Supreme Court on Monday ruled that an employment contract barring third-party lawsuits wasn’t enforceable under the state’s workers’ compensation law because it contravenes public policy, but a trial court must still determine if the suing employee was partially liable for the injury that prompted his suit.

Read more.

 

 

NJ High Court OKs Roche’s Bids To Review Accutane Rulings

Bill Wichert | Law360

Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. has convinced the New Jersey Supreme Court to review two state appellate decisions related to the company’s acne medication Accutane, with the justices agreeing to consider rulings over the adequacy of the drug’s label and the admissibility of expert testimony.

Read more.

 

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news. 

 

Top News Clips for December 2-8

December 8, 2017News, Recent NewsNew Jersey CourtsNJCJI

Senate Stocks Superior Court, Confirms Two County Prosecutors

Michael Booth | New Jersey Law Journal

The New Jersey Senate on Thursday confirmed 27 new Superior Court judges, three new administrative law judges, and a new Tax Court judge, and granted tenure to three sitting Superior Court judges and a workers’ compensation judge.

Read more.

 

 

Follow @NJCivilJustice on Twitter for even more news. 

 

Posts navigation

← Older posts

Newsletter Sign Up




© 2022 NJCJI. All rights reserved.

Follow us on:

  • twitter
  • linkedin

TWITTER FEED TWITTER FEED

  • https://t.co/DlWbCRFBea, Jul 1
  • https://t.co/xl0stnCZfj NJCJI President Anthony Anastasio testified this week about the implications of NJ Senate… https://t.co/o55d5pA29b, Jun 24
  • https://t.co/x2z9vrW707 Thank you to @PPAGInc, @GenovaBurns, and @PBWTLaw for your support of the 2022 Spring Event!, Jun 21
  • Institute for Legal Reform Releases Update on Third-Party Litigation Funding https://t.co/UQDqeUQ712, Apr 15
  • The American Tort Reform Association issued a report about the National Association of Attorneys General. https://t.co/14sYVCKPrY, Apr 8

    QUICK CONTACT



    Please enter the code as shown below

    captcha

    New Jersey Civil Justice Institute | 112 West State Street, Trenton, NJ 08608 | office: (609) 218-6331 | info@civiljusticenj.org