NJ Appellate Law Blog – NJ Appellate Lawyer Bruce D. Greenberg blogs about Appeals and Appellate Law Practice

The Availability of Class Arbitration is for a Court, Not an Arbitrator, to Decide

Opalinski v. Robert Half Int'l Inc., 761 F.3d 314 (3d Cir. 2014). In this case under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. §201 et seq. ("FLSA"), plaintiffs signed employment agreements...

Securities Fraud Class Actions Survive

Halliburton Co. v. Erica P. John Fund, Inc., ___ U.S. ___ (2014). In general, in a securities fraud case under section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 15...

No En Banc Review or Rehearing in Carrera v. Bayer

Carrera v. Bayer Corp., 727 F.3d 300 (3d Cir. 2013), severely restricted class certification in cases that involve products of whose purchasers selling defendants do not keep records. That is the...

Two Interesting Wrinkles on Waiver (or Non-Waiver) of Issues Purportedly Not Raised Below

Thompson v. Real Estate Mortgage Network, 748 F.3d 142 (3d Cir. 2014). This opinion, issued today by Judge Vanaskie, is an important one in that it clarifies the pleading standards...

Like a Bad Penny

Some dubious legislation, like a bad penny, keeps coming back on the scene. For a number of years, a bill that would allow appeals as of right of orders granting...

U.S. Supreme Court Denies Review of Washing Machine Class Actions

For many months, the class action defendants' lobby has highlighted two Circuit Court opinions as the latest poster boys in a campaign whose ultimate goal is to abolish class actions....

"If at First You Don't Succeed …."

Dewey v. Volkswagen, A.G., 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 2596 (3d Cir. Feb. 12, 2014). In Dewey v. Volkswagen, A.G., 681 F.3d 170 (3d Cir. 2012), the Third Circuit reversed approval...

The Limitations of Mandamus

Caporusso v. New Jersey Dep't of Health & Senior Services, 434 N.J. Super. 88 (App. Div. 2014). The prerogative writ of mandamus is the centerpiece of this opinion by Judge...

Encore! "Class Action Settlement Objectors" Webinar

In each of the past two years, I have been a speaker on a Strafford Publications webinar titled "Class Action Settlement Objectors: Minimizing and Defending Challenges by Professional Objectors, Government...

Ignorance of the Rules Does Not Constitute Excusable Neglect

Eastman v. First Data Corp., 736 F.3d 675 (3d Cir. 2013). Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) permits the losing party on a motion to certify a class, whether plaintiff...

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 111213 14 15 16…Last

"Hot Fun in the Summertime": Appellate Division Summer Parts

In an Order available here, Chief Justice Rabner announced the lineup for the Appellate Division's summer Parts. As has been customary, the "summer" runs not between the meteorological start and end dates for summer, nor from Memorial Day to Labor Day, but from June 16 through September 7....

The Supreme Court Confirms That Municipalities Can be Subjected to Sanctions for Frivolous Litigation

Borough of Englewood Cliffs v. Trautner, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). This appeal presented the question of whether municipalities can be liable to pay sanctions for frivolous litigation, under the Frivolous Litigation Statute, N.J.S.A. 2A:15-59.1 ("the FLS"). In a 5-0 opinion written by Justice Fasciale (Chief Justice Rabner and Justice Hoffman did not participate), the Court affirmed, as modified, the decision of the Appellate Division that upheld the Law Division's imposition of FLS sanctions against the Borough....

The "Castle Doctrine"

State v. Bragg, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). A jury found defendant guilty of twelve charged counts, including attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, terroristic threats, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, endangering, and two lesser-included offenses of harassment. Some of those charges involved the use of deadly force. Persons may not use deadly force if the can retreat with complete safety. But under the "castle doctrine," an exception to the general rule, a person "is not obliged to retreat from his dwelling, unless he was the initial aggressor." N.J.S.A. 2C:3-4(b)(2)(b)(i). That doctrine derives from the common law....

No Arbitrariness in Rejection of Public Construction Bid That Failed to Include a Properly Signed, Required Consent of Surety

In the Matter of Protest Filed by El Sol Contracting and Construction Corp., Contract T100.638, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). This public bidding case resulted in a 5-2 split at the Supreme Court, the first non-unanimous ruling of the current Term. Justice Hoffman wrote the majority opinion, while Justice Fasciale authored the dissent for himself and Justice Pierre-Louis....