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

The Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association and a Landmark Decision in Constitutional Law

Forty years ago today, the Supreme Court decided State v. Celmer, 80 N.J. 405 (1979), a case that arose out of he conviction of defendant on charges of DWI, speeding,...

Reversal Without Remand of Civil Service Commission Matter to Consider Admissibility of Potentially Relevant Evidence Was Error

In re Corbo, 238 N.J. 246 (2019). Justice Fernandez-Vina's opinion for a 6-0 Supreme Court today (Justice Timpone did not participate) is unusual in that it addresses not the substantive...

Three New Appeals Take Three Different Routes to the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted review in three more cases. Each one came to the Court in a different way. In the first case, S.T. v. 1515...

No New Trial for Plaintiff Who Strategically Did Not Object to Trial Testimony That Was Inconsistent With Discovery Responses

T.L. v. Goldberg, 238 N.J. 218 (2019). The issue in this medical malpractice case was whether plaintiff was entitled to a new trial because defendant, without objection by plaintiff, offered...

The Supreme Court Takes Up Two Published Appellate Division Cases and a Key Hoboken Land Use Ruling

The Supreme Court announced late yesterday that it has granted certification in three cases. Two of the matters produced published opinions in the Appellate Division. The first of those is...

This Kind of "STOLI" is Against New Jersey's Public Policy

Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 238 N.J. 157 (2019). This appeal came to the Supreme Court via questions certified by the Third Circuit Court...

The Anniversary of Packard-Bamberger v. Collier

On May 30, 2001, the Supreme Court decided Packard-Bamberger & Co. v. Collier, 167 N.J. 427 (2001). Writing for a unanimous Court, Justice Verniero held that a corporate director who...

The Supreme Court Will Review Three Published Appellate Division Decisions, and One Unpublished One

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted review in four more cases. In three of those appeals, the Court granted petitions for certification. In the fourth case, the Court...

Shareholder Requests to Inspect Corporate Books and Records

Feuer v. Merck & Co., Inc., 238 N.J. 27 (2019). As discussed here, the Appellate Division, in an opinion by Judge Ostrer that was reported at 455 N.J. Super. 69...

When New Issues Arise on Appeal, Appellate Division Should Conduct Oral Argument Even if No Party Originally Requested It

State in the Interest of D.M., 238 N.J. 2 (2019). In this juvenile delinquency case, neither the State nor defendant sought oral argument in the Appellate Division. The State, the...

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"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....