NJ Appellate Law Blog

When is a Child Witness Competent to Testify?

State v. Bueso, 225 N.J. 193 (2016). Today, the Supreme Court addressed the issue of how a trial court should evaluate the competency of a child witness to testify. The...

"Cumulative Error" Results in Reversal of a Plaintiffs' Jury Verdict

Torres v. Pabon, 225 N.J. 167 (2016). As Justice Patterson explained in her decision today for a unanimous Supreme Court, "cumulative error" exists when "the aggregate effect of a series...

The Supreme Court Lays Out the Procedures for Cases Under the Grandparent Visitation Statute

Major v. Maguire, 224 N.J. 1 (2016). The Grandparent Visitation Statute, N.J.S.A. 9:2-7.1, permits grandparents to apply for visitation rights with their grandchildren even where the children's parents object. In...

Disgorgement of Employee's Compensation May be Awarded Even Where Breach of Duty of Loyalty to Employer Does Not Cause Damage

Kaye v. Rosefielde, 223 N.J. 218 (2015). Kaye v. Rosefielde, 432 N.J. Super. 421 (App. Div. 2013), discussed here, seemed destined for Supreme Court review. The Court did grant review,...

Redd v. Bowman: The Supreme Court Says That the Faulkner Act Initiative Proponents Must Start All Over Again

Redd v. Bowman, 223 N.J. 87 (2015). In Redd v. Bowman, 433 N.J. Super. 178 (App. Div. 2013), discussed here, the Appellate Division held that an initiative petition with a...

An Unusual Lineup in the Supreme Court

Ross v. Lowitz, 222 N.J. 494 (2015). This case involved damage resulting from the migration of home heating oil from an underground storage tank on one property onto a neighboring...

Catching Up

My three-week trial ended late last week, with a successful jury verdict. But June was a very busy month in the world of New Jersey appellate practice, with numerous important...

A Supreme Court Opinion About Net Opinions

Townsend v. Pierre, 221 N.J. 36 (2015). In this opinion, issued yesterday, the Supreme Court reversed a ruling of the Appellate Division. The Appellate Division's decision was discussed here. The...

"Adverse Inference" Jury Charges Regarding Failure to Call an Expert Witness to Testify

Washington v. Perez, 219 N.J. 338 (2014). Under certain circumstances, a party is entitled to a charge that permits a jury to draw an adverse inference from an opposing party's failure to...

Last Night's MCBA Appellate Practice Seminar: A Big Hit

Last night, the Morris County Bar Association presented "New Jersey Appellate Practice: Tips from the Bench and Bar." The program and participants were discussed here. Roughly 125 people attended, and...

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The Final Catch-Up Post: Three Published Appellate Division Decisions

To bring things current, this post summarizes three published Appellate Division opinions that were issued in the recent period. The subject matter of these ruling ranged from construing a Court Rule about reconsideration to applying the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act ("PDVA") to determining whether the Attorney General's office was required to defend and indemnify a Deputy Chief Assistant Prosecutor facing an attorney disciplinary proceeding that arose out of his official duties....

Three Supreme Court Decisions to Catch Up On

This is the second post that catches up with appellate developments last week and this week. The Supreme Court issued rulings in three cases during that period. Two of those appeals involved unanimous opinions. The third engendered a relatively rare 5-2 split among the Justices. Here are summaries:...

Three More Criminal Appeals for the Supreme Court

Much of last week was consumed by a sojourn in Hershey, PA for the Third Circuit Judicial Conference, a very enjoyable and educational experience. As a result, it's time for some catching up. Today's is the first such post....

Statutory Ban on Retroactive Reduction of Court-Ordered Child Support is Inapplicable to Reductions Based on a Child's Emancipation

Bournes v. Harris, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2026). This post-dissolution appeal from the Family Part involved several questions arising out of a Marital Settlement Agreement ("MSA") entered in a Texas court. In an opinion by Judge Firko, the Appellate Division affirmed a ruling by Judge Lougy, whom the panel identified by name, that New Jersey courts had jurisdiction to enforce and to modify the Texas MSA, and that Judge Lougy properly enforced arrears....