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

Error of "Constitutional Dimension" Can Still be Harmless Error

State v. Camacho, 218 N.J. 533 (2014). It is an error "of constitutional dimension" for a trial judge in a criminal case to fail to instruct the jury that it...

"Phantom Impeachment" of Witnesses

Manata v. Pereira, 436 N.J. Super. 330 (App. Div. 2014). In this automobile-pedestrian collision case, "plaintiff's counsel engaged in improper cross-examination when he confronted defendant with a police report that...

Jury Charges on Causation in Medical Malpractice Cases

Komlodi v. Picciano, 217 N.J. 387 (2014). Causation is often a key factor in medical malpractice cases. And jury charges in such cases are, as in all cases, important to...

The "Colonel" May be Going to the Supreme Court

Prioleau v. Kentucky Fried Chicken, Inc., 434 N.J. Super. 558 (App. Div. 2014). In Arroyo v. Durling Realty, LLC, 443 N.J. Super. 238 (App. Div. 2013), discussed here, Judge Sabatino discussed the "mode of...

No Jury Trial Right Under the Insurance Fraud Prevention Act

Allstate New Jersey Ins. Co. v. Lajara, 433 N.J. Super. 20 (App. Div. 2013). Plaintiff insurers sued a number of defendants under the Insurance Fraud Prevention Act, N.J.S.A. 17:33A-1 to...

The Year's Longest Published Appellate Division Decision

Kaye v. Rosefielde, 432 N.J. Super. 421 (App. Div. 2013). This first post of the 2013-2014 Term focuses on the longest published decision issued by the Appellate Division in the just-ended 2012-2013...

The Third Circuit Speaks About Rule 404(b) "Prior Bad Act" Evidence

Here is another guest post from Jeffrey A. Shooman, who was then my colleague at Lite DePalma Greenberg, LLC, on an important criminal law decision of the Third Circuit: United...

The Supreme Court Rejects "Jury Homework"

State v. Morgan, 217 N.J. 1 (2013). In State v. Morgan, 423 N.J. Super. 453 (App. Div. 2011), discussed here, the Appellate Division found no bar to a trial judge...

"Upper Management" Jury Instruction is Required for Punitive Damages Claims Under CEPA

Longo v. Pleasure Productions, Inc., 215 N.J. 48 (2013). A plaintiff under the Conscientious Employee Protection Act, N.J.S.A. 34:19-1 to -8 ("CEPA"), can recover punitive damages against an employer, under the doctrine...

The Consumer Fraud Act in Condominium Construction Defect Litigation

Belmont Condominium Ass'n, Inc. v. Geibel, 432 N.J. Super. 52 (App. Div. 2013). This case resulted in another magnum opus by Judge Parrillo. Plaintiff sued over defective construction of a...

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Sentencing Counsel's Limited Investigation of Defendant's Citizenship Was Not Constitutionally Ineffective in the Circumstances

State v. Hernandez-Peralta, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). Justice Wainer Apter's decision today for a 5-2 Supreme Court majority began by phrasing the issue presented. "In this appeal, we consider whether sentencing counsel was constitutionally ineffective for failing to investigate defendant's citizenship status beyond asking him if he was a United States citizen and receiving an unequivocal ‘yes,' and therefore not advising him that his plea could make him subject to deportation." The majority found, based on the particular facts, that counsel was not constitutionally ineffective, reversing the two lower courts. Justice Noriega, joined by Justice Fasciale, dissented....

The 2025-26 General Assignment Order

Chief Justice Rabner announced the 2025-26 General Assignment Order. It is available here....

New Jersey's Charity Care Program for Hospitals is Not a Per Se Unconstitutional Taking of Property

Englewood Hospital & Medical Center v. State, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). New Jersey has had a charity care program, in one form or another, for 178 years. As Justice Fasciale summarized the current charity care program in his opinion for a unanimous Supreme Court, under the current program "hospitals cannot turn away a patient for inability to pay, N.J.S.A. 26:2H-18.64, and patients who qualify for charity care shall not be billed for services rendered, N.J.A.C. 10:52-11.4. Instead, ‘disproportionate share hospitals' (DSHs), or hospitals that serve a disproportionate number of low-income patients, see N.J.S.A. 26:2H-18.52, receive annual subsidies from the Health Care Subsidy Fund (HCSF) in exchange for providing charity care, see N.J.S.A. 26:2H-18.52, .58, .58d."...

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."...