New Jersey has a lot of things going for it. If you check out Choose New Jersey’s promotional materials touting our strengths you will see that we are “highly educated, perfectly located.” Unfortunately, those are not the only characteristics a state needs in order to see its economy thrive.
Countless jokes have been made since Sergio Bichao broke the news that a local couple is taking legal action against their former employer because they allege the husband was fired for passing too much gas, but this is far from a laughing matter. This is the perfect example of what can happen when laws that are drafted with the best of intentions in mind are taken just a little too far.
It has been almost a year since we first brought the plight of Just Mayo to your attention. The popular start-up company that makes egg-less food products has been entangled in multiple legal battles over the past year all because there is federal definition of mayonnaise. Yes, you read that right, there is a federal definition of mayonnaise, and it’s spurring litigation.
For the past 10 years, the vast majority of all class actions have been tried in the federal courts rather than the state courts thanks to the enactment of the federal Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA). The judiciary is now having a discussion about the rules governing such suits, namely FRCP 23.
A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of September 26-October 2.
Did you celebrate National Coffee Day earlier this week? If so, we hope you were cautious.
Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court, the New Jersey Supreme Court has no set schedule dictating when opinions are likely to be released. (For example, NJCJI is still waiting for an opinion in the DeMarco v. Stoddard case, which was heard in April.) This week a couple of interesting civil decisions were released.
Bill Spadea, the host of the Chasing News TV program and frequent guest host on NJ 101.5, wants to know what New Jersians think about frivolous litigation and the potential to curb it by instituting a loser pays system. Let him know what you think by tweeting @nj1015 and @BillSpadea.
A new report from the American Tort Reform Association and the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform, “The Trial Lawyer Underground: Covertly Lobbying the Executive Branch,” documents how plaintiffs’ lawyers have been able to successfully lobby the executive branch to expand civil liability (and increase their bottom lines) over the past few years.
Since January 1, businesses in New Jersey have had the opportunity to opt in to a new complex commercial litigation program in disputes where the damages are projected to exceed $200,000. New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner will provide an update on the complex commercial litigation program, and discuss the need for lawyers with such backgrounds to seek appointments to the bench at a free event hosted by the New Jersey State Bar Association on Tuesday, October 20.
