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

A Square Conflict in Recent Appellate Division Decisions Regarding the Unemployment Statute

Blake v. Board of Review, 452 N.J. Super. 7 (App. Div. 2017). In McClain v. Board of Review, 451 N.J. Super. 461 (App. Div. 2017), discussed here, a panel of...

In a Construction Defect Case, the Supreme Court Again Clarifies Statute of Limitations Law

The Palisades at Fort Lee Condominium Association, Inc. v. 100 Old Palisade, LLC, 230 N.J. 427 (2017). This opinion, by Justice Albin for a unanimous Court, involved a lengthy construction...

Volunteer Fireman is Not an "Employee" of His Volunteer Fire Company for Purposes of CEPA

Sauter v. Colts Neck Volunteer Fire Co. No. 2, 451 N.J. Super. 581 (App. Div. 2017). The Conscientious Employee Protection Act, N.J.S.A. 34:19-1 to -14 ("CEPA") protects "employees who report...

A 2015 Amendment to the Unemployment Insurance Statute is Construed Favorably to a Claimant

McClain v. Board of Review, 451 N.J. Super. 461 (App. Div. 2017). In general, employees who leave work voluntarily are disqualified from obtaining unemployment benefits. In 2015, the unemployment statute,...

When Are Federal and State Court Cases "Parallel Proceedings" for Declaratory Judgment Act Purposes?

Kelly v. Maxum Specialty Ins. Group, 868 F.3d 274 (3d Cir. 2017). Judge Chagares began one of the early paragraphs of today's opinion for the Third Circuit in this Declaratory Judgment...

Pharmaceutical Patent Antitrust Class Action Complaints Stated Plausible Claims for Relief, so the Third Circuit Reverses the Dismissal of Those Cases

In re Lipitor Antitrust Litig., 868 F.3d 231 (3d Cir. 2017). It is evident that an appeal is a big one when, as here, the caption and counsel list consume...

The Third Circuit Grants Mandamus, and Announces a New Test for Transfer in Unusual Circumstances

In re Howmedica Osteonics Corp., 867 F.3d 390 (3d Cir. 2017). Today's opinion by Judge Krause contains a little bit of a lot of things: in no particular order, waiver,...

Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation Program is Meant to Produce Enforceable Settlements, and the Supreme Court Enforces Such a Settlement

GMAC Mortgage, LLC v. Willoughby, 230 N.J. 172 (2017). In 2008, recognizing the effects of the financial crisis on New Jersey homeowners, our Supreme Court established the Residential Mortgage Foreclosure...

The Appellate Division Addresses the Noerr-Pennington Doctrine

Main Street at Woolwich, LLC v. Ammons Supermarket, Inc., 415 N.J. Super. 135 (App. Div. 2017). The Noerr-Pennington doctrine, which originated in two cases from the Supreme Court of the...

Another Accutane Decision, and a Big Win for Plaintiffs

, 451 N.J. Super. 153 (App. Div. 2017). [Disclosure: I was one of the counsel who argued this appeal for the successful plaintiffs]. This must be Accutane week. On Tuesday,...

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The Last Seven Days

The last seven days, an especially busy period for me, featured one Supreme Court opinion and two published Appellate Division decisions. Here are summaries of those rulings:...

No Ethics Violation in Attorney Purchasing Another Attorney's Name as a Keyword for Internet Searches, the Supreme Court Says, With a Caveat

In re Opinion No. 735 of the Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). [Disclosure: I represented an amicus curiae in this appeal]. As Justice Noriega said in his opinion for a 5-1 majority (Justice Pierre-Louis did not participate), this appeal "presents the narrow question of whether it is permissible under the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC) for an attorney or law firm to purchase a competing attorney's or law firm's name as a keyword." The Court found it permissible, with a caveat. Justice Fasciale dissented....

Four Criminal Law Cases, and a Qui Tam Appeal, for the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court announced today that it has granted review in five new appeals. One of them is before the Court on leave to appeal, while in the others the Court granted certification....

The "Limited Attorney Exemption" of the Debt Adjustment and Credit Counseling Act is Held Unconstitutional as Violative of the Separation of Powers and Void for Vagueness

Anchor Law Firm, PLLC v. State of New Jersey, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2025). The Debt Adjustment and Credit Counseling Act, N.J.S.A. 17:16G-1 et seq. ("DACCA"), prohibits debt adjusters in New Jersey from operating for a profit. There is an exception for attorneys not "principally engaged" (a term not defined in the statute) in debt adjustment. That exception, adopted in a 1986 amendment, replaced a prior version of the DACCA that had exempted all attorneys from its scope....