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

State v. Jackson, 243 N.J. 52 (2020), Is Not to be Given Full Retroactivity

State v. Hand, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2024). In State v. Jackson, 243 N.J. 52 (2020), the Supreme Court reversed the defendant's conviction because his counsel was barred...

Judge Jablonski is Elevated to the Appellate Division

Chief Justice Rabner announced that Judge Jablonski has been promoted to the Appellate Division. He will serve on Part A. Appointed to the Hudson County bench in 2013, Judge Jablonski...

Last Week in the Appellate Division

Today is Election Day, and courts are closed. That offers the opportunity to catch up with the Appellate Division, which issued three published opinions last week. Here are summaries of...

Editorial- The 2024 Presidential Election

[Disclosure/disclaimer: As with all posts labeled "Editorial," this post reflects the views only of its author. The views expressed do not purport to represent those of Lite DePalma Greenberg &...

Appellate Division Oral Argument of the Week: The School Ethics Act vs. The First Amendment

Tomorrow, October 29, judges on Part F will hear oral argument in Donnerstag v. Koenig. The appeal is from a decision of the School Ethics Commission. The case arose from...

Appellate Division Oral Argument of the Week: Is It a Design Defect for an Auto Manufacturer Not to Include Available Safety Technology in a Particular Model of Vehicle?

On Tuesday, October 22, judges on Part E will hear oral argument in Berkoski v. Honda Motor Co. Ltd. The briefing on that appeal, which has been taken from the...

Three Basic Appellate Principles From a Recent Unpublished Opinion

At this time of the year, published decisions from the Supreme Court and the Appellate Division are few and far between, as the new Term is barely one month old....

Some Changes to the Appellate Division's Part C

Judge Vernoia will reach the mandatory retirement age of 70 on October 11. In light of that, Chief Justice Rabner announced that Judge Mawla will become Presiding Judge of Part...

It's Justice Hoffman Now

As expected, the Senate voted yesterday to confirm John Hoffman, Governor Murphy's nominee to fill the seat vacated by Justice Solomon due to his mandatory retirement, to become an Associate...

Appellate Division Oral Argument of the Week: Can Sea Bright Seek to Withdraw From the Oceanport School District and Join a Different District?

On Tuesday, October 1, judges on Part F will hear oral argument in In the Matter of the Verified Petition for the Proposed Creation of a PK-12 All-Purpose Regional School...

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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....