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

Three More Cases to be Reviewed by the Supreme Court

Today, the Supreme Court announced that it has granted review in three cases. All three cases involve grants of certification, and one of them also is an appeal as of...

Election Law Enforcement Commission Can Pursue Complaint Against Essex County Executive

New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission v. DiVincenzo, 451 N.J. Super. 554 (App. Div. 2017). In 2011, the New Jersey Election Law Commission ("ELEC"), an independent four-member body that enforces...

Judge Espinosa Returns to the Appellate Division (Temporarily)

The Supreme Court announced today that Judge Espinosa has been temporarily assigned to Part E of the Appellate Division from September 1 through September 30, 2017. That Order amends the...

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,...

Municipal Planning and Zoning Boards Lack Power Over State University Development Proposals

Montclair State University v. County of Passaic, 451 N.J. Super. 523 (App. Div. 2017). The Municipal Land Use Law, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., places responsibility for development applications within a...

The Supreme Court Abandons Baures v. Lewis in Family Law Child Relocation Cases

Bisbing v. Bisbing, 230 N.J. 309 (2017). Justice Patterson began her opinion in this case, for a unanimous Court, as follows. "This appeal arises from a trial court's post-judgment determination...

Mandatory E-Filing Coming to the Appellate Division This Fall, So Get Your Training for That

In a Notice to the Bar that is available here, the Appellate Division announced that it "anticipates that e-filing of appeals will be made mandatory in the fall of 2017."...

Judge Lisa Rose is Temporarily Assigned to the Appellate Division

Chief Justice Rabner has announced that Judge Lisa Rose is being temporarily assigned to the Appellate Division, Part A, for the period of September 11-November 19, 2017. As reported here...

Two Opinions in Two Days by Justice Solomon

In re Atlantic County, 230 N.J. 237 (2017); In re New Jersey Firemens Association Obligation to Provide Relief Application Under Open Public Records Act, 230 N.J. 258 (2017). On Wednesday...

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...

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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....