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

The Fifth Anniversary of New Jersey Appellate Law Blog

Today is the fifth anniversary of this blog. It has been another interesting year of covering the Supreme Court of New Jersey, the Appellate Division, and the Third Circuit, with...

A Landmark Civil Rights Opinion by Judge Ambro

Hassan v. City of New York, 804 F.3d 277 (3d Cir. 2015). This opinion by Judge Ambro yesterday is one of the most important decisions that the Third Circuit has...

What is a "Building"?

Cashin v. Bello, 223 N.J. 328 (2015). The cardinal principle of statutory interpretation is that plain language controls and ends the need for any further inquiry. In this opinion by...

Tolling of Time Due to This Week's Justice Complex Closures

Yesterday, October 1, and the day before, September 30, the Supreme Court Clerk's Office, the Appellate Division Clerk's Office, and other Clerk's Offices in the Hughes Justice Complex in Trenton...

Justice Fernandez-Vina Will be Temporarily Absent

The Supreme Court announced yesterday that Justice Fernandez-Vina recently had eye surgery and is scheduled for another operation "in the near future" as well. Accordingly, he will not be participating...

Stays Pending Appeal

In re Revel AC, Inc., 802 F.3d 558 (3d Cir. 2015). "We seldom focus on how to balance the four factors that determine whether to grant a stay pending appeal...

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,...

40 Years Ago Today, A Questionable Mootness Decision

On this date in 1975, the Supreme Court decided Oxfeld v. New Jersey State Bd. of Educ., 68 N.J. 301 (1978). The case involved claims of students at Columbia High...

A Unanimous Three-Judge Panel Opinion, With a Unanimous Concurrence by the Same Three Judges. Huh??

Lincoln Benefit Life Co. v. AEI Life, LLC, 800 F.3d 99 (3d Cir. 2015). For a single judge on a three-judge Third Circuit panel to issue a concurring opinion is...

Jack Trubenbach Retires

Jack Trubenbach may be the most important person at the Appellate Division whom few people know about. For exactly 36 years, beginning on September 1, 1979, he has been with...

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A Municipal Court Administrator is Employed by the Township, Not the Administrative Office of the Courts

Palmisano v. State of New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2025). The opening paragraph of Judge Marczyk's opinion for the Appellate Division well encapsulates what the appeal was about and what the result was. "Plaintiff Lindsay Palmisano appeals from the trial court's April 1, 2024 order dismissing her complaint with prejudice against defendant State of New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts and Municipal Division (AOC) pursuant to Rule 4:6-2(e). The primary issue on appeal is whether plaintiff, a municipal court administrator, is an employee of the AOC, thereby allowing her to assert a claim against the AOC under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 to -49. Based on our review of the record and the applicable legal principles, we conclude plaintiff was employed by Vernon Township (Township), not the AOC, and, therefore, we affirm."...

Supreme Court to Take Up Two Published Appellate Division Opinions

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted review in two new appeals. One is before the Court on leave to appeal. The Court granted certification in the other matter....

South Seaside Park Can Detach Itself From Berkeley Township

Whiteman v. Township Council of Berkeley Township, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). South Seaside Park is a small (490 year-round residents) barrier island community that has been annexed to the Township of Berkeley ("the Township"). South Seaside Park sought to deannex itself from the Township and to be annexed instead to the Borough of Seaside Park. South Seaside Park followed a statutory petitioning procedure in doing so. The Township refused consent. South Seaside Park went to court and won a ruling from the Law Division that rejected the Township's refusal. The Appellate Division affirmed. Yesterday, in a unanimous opinion by Justice Patterson, the Supreme Court affirmed as well....

Megan's Law "Not Likely to Pose a Threat to the Safety of Others" Extends to Non-Sexual as Well as Sexual Re-Offenses

In re Registrant S.O., ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2025). This appeal presented a pure legal issue relating to the "public safety prongs" contained in the termination provisions of Megan's Law, N.J.S.A. 2C:7-2(f), and the Community Supervision for Life statute ("CSL"), N.J.S.A. 2C:43-6.4(c). Judge Vanek crystallized that "novel" issue as "whether, on a registrant's application to terminate Megan's Law and CSL obligations, the phrase ‘not likely to pose a threat to the safety of others' should be broadly interpreted with the trial court considering threats to safety from subsequent non-sexual and sexual offenses or whether the inquiry should be limited to the threat of sexual re-offense only." The panel held that the broader view was the correct one....