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

Negotiated Property Settlement Agreement in Matrimonial Case Defeats Changed Circumstances Application

Bermeo v. Bermeo, 457 N.J. Super. 77 (App. Div. 2018). Today is the second consecutive day on which Judge Firko released a published opinion. The essence of it is that...

Fox Rothschild Case, and Two Criminal Appeals, Come to the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted certification in three cases. Two of them are criminal matters. The third involves a claim against the Fox Rothschild law firm on...

Assignor's Loss of a Mortgage Note Does Not Preclude Foreclosure by an Assignee

Investors Bank v. Torres, 457 N.J. Super. 53 (App. Div. 2018). In this foreclosure case, the plaintiff bank was the assignee of a note that was secured by a mortgage....

At-Will Employee Cannot Bring Oppressed Shareholder Claim Based on Termination of Employment

Metro Commercial Management Services, Inc. v. Van Istendal, 457 N.J. Super. 66 (App. Div. 2018). This opinion, issued today, is the first published opinion authored by Judge Firko. It involves...

An Earthquake in DWI Law?

State v. Cassidy, 235 N.J. 482 (2018). This unanimous opinion by Justice Timpone adopted the extensive opinion of a Special Master, retired Appellate Division Judge Lisa, on the subject of...

Flanzman v. Jenny Craig, Inc. Reissued by the Appellate Division

Flanzman v. Jenny Craig, Inc., 456 N.J. Super. 613 (App. Div. 2018). The Appellate Division previously issued its opinion in this case, written by Judge Fasciale, on October 17, 2018,...

Applying the Statute of Limitations for Foreclosure Cases

Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas v. Weiner, 456 N.J. Super. 546 (App. Div. 2018). Judge Fisher issued this short decision in this case today. The body of the opinion consumes...

Equitable Adoption Doctrine Cannot be Used to Destroy Inheritance Rights

In re Estate of Douglas Castellano and Parentage of Gregory Bock, 456 N.J. Super. 510 (App. Div. 2018). This unusually captioned appeal presented a Chancery issue that was right up...

Tenant May be Evicted for Damage Caused Solely by Subtenant

Rampersaud v. Hollingsworth, 456 N.J. Super. 502 (App. Div. 2018). The opening paragraph of this opinion by Judge Fisher well summarized the issue on this appeal, and the result. "In...

Halloween: A Not-at-All Spooky Anniversary in Defamation Law

On October 31, 1955, the Supreme Court decided Rainier's Dairies v. Raritan Valley Farms, Inc., 19 N.J. 552 (1955). It was a 6-1 decision, with Justice Jacobs writing for 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....