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

Remittitur, "Feel of the Case," and "Shocks the Conscience"

Mickens v. Misdom, 438 N.J. Super. 531 (App. Div. 2015). Today's opinion, by Judge Fisher, affirms the ruling of a Union County trial judge (apparently, Judge Hely, based on a...

"To Each His Own": The Affidavit of Merit Statute Requires an Affidavit From a "Like-Licensed" Professional

Hill International, Inc. v. Atlantic City Bd. of Educ., 438 N.J. Super. 562 (App. Div. 2014). The Affidavit of Merit statute, N.J.S.A. 2A:53A-26 to -29, requires that a plaintiff in...

The Dawn of Regulation of Cable Television

Forty years ago today, when cable television was in relative infancy, the Appellate Division decided In re Promulgation of Rules of Practice and Regulations for the Office of Cable Television,...

Deferring to the Factfinder's Credibility Determinations

New Jersey Division of Child Protection & Permanency v. B.O., 438 N.J. Super. 373 (App. Div. 2014). Very few appeals are based on the argument that the finder of fact...

The First Opinion by Justice Solomon

State v. Jaffe, 220 N.J. 114 (2014). As discussed here, the first opinion written by a new Justice is generally a unanimous decision in a relatively unexceptional case. Today, Justice Solomon, a...

"Brown" Wins a Tax Penalty Appeal in the Supreme Court

United Parcel Service Gen. Servs. Co. v. Director, Div. of Taxation, 220 N.J. 90 (2014). This per curiam decision of the Supreme Court today affirmed an Appellate Division decision, written by Judge...

Immunity for Actions of Hospital Internal Review Committees

Hurwitz v. AHS Hospital Corp., 438 N.J. Super. 269 (App. Div. 2014). The Healthcare Quality Improvement Act of 1986 ("HCQIA"), 42 U.S.C. §§11111-11112, creates an immunity from damages claims arising...

No Sufficient Findings Below, So No Appellate Ruling on Constitutional Challenge to Advance Voter Registration Statute

Rutgers University Student Assembly v. Middlesex Cty. Bd. of Elections, 438 N.J. Super. 93 (App. Div. 2014). Plaintiffs challenged the constitutionality of N.J.S.A. 19:31-6.3b, which, as Judge Haas described it...

Collateral Estoppel, Law of the Case, and Some Evidence Issues

L.T. v. F.M., 438 N.J. Super. 76 (App. Div. 2014). This case began with plaintiff obtaining a final restraining order ("FRO") against defendant in the Family Part because defendant had...

A "Tail" Insurance Tale

Mortgage Grader, Inc. v. Ward & Olivo, LLP, 438 N.J. Super. 202 (App. Div. 2014). In the legal malpractice context, a "tail" insurance policy is one that "provides insurance coverage for malpractice...

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An Arbitration Case and a Cannabis Land Use Appeal for the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted certification in two new appeals. One of those is from a published Appellate Division decision, while the other appeal is from an unpublished opinion of a two-judge Appellate Division panel....

Murder Trial Judge Inadequately Addressed Juror Misconduct, Requiring Remand to Determine Whether Jury Was Tainted

State v. Byrd, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). Justice Noriega authored the Court's unanimous opinion in this case today. During the murder trial that led to this appeal, allegations of misconduct by a certain juror, No. 8, surfaced. That juror allegedly conducted outside research, discussed the case with third parties, texted one of the defendants, and expressed an intent to find defendants guilty. The trial judge questioned Juror No. 8, but on appeal from defendants' convictions, the Supreme Court concluded that the trial court's inquiry "was insufficiently tailored to the allegations against the juror, failed to probe into the heart of the allegations, and was therefore inadequate." The Court remanded the case for further proceedings....

Attorney General's Supersession of the Paterson Police Department Was Not Arbitrary, Capricious, or Unreasonable

Bulur v. Office of the Attorney General, ___ N.J. ___ (2025). In 2023, after a fatal shooting by Paterson police officers, the New Jersey Attorney General announced on March 27, 2023 that his office was superseding (that is, taking over responsibility for) the Paterson Police Department. Lawsuits were filed and transferred to the Appellate Division. In an opinion reported at 480 N.J. Super. 395 (App. Div. 2024), and summarized here, the Appellate Division voided the supersession. Today, the Supreme Court reversed in a unanimous opinion by Justice Patterson....

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....