Top News Clips for the Week of March 28-April 2
A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of March 28-April 2.
Weird Regulatory Lawsuits Flooding New Jersey Courts, Blindsiding Businesses
The judicial system was not designed with business regulation in mind. Nevertheless, over the past few years New Jersey businesses have faced an increasing number of regulatory-based lawsuits, many of them quite frivolous in nature. These lawsuits are not being brought by the government, but by private attorneys empowered to enforce obscure business regulations on the government’s behalf.
Is Litigation the Best Way to Regulate Business?
A number of New Jersey’s state regulatory provisions specify statutory penalties for violations. Having a defined penalty enhances predictability and reduces inconsistent application of the law. When the statutes provide for enforcement actions by individual consumers, the statutory penalty model has the potential to provide the individual with a straightforward means of redress, often without need to even hire an attorney. Attorneys are getting involved though, and it is leading us toward a system where businesses are being regulated one jury at a time.
Accutane Ruling Affirms New Jersey Law is Headed in the Right Direction
This morning the Appellate Division issued an important ruling in the ongoing litigation over Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.’s acne medication Accutane. The ruling brings to a close a case that has been bogging down the court system for over a decade, and sends a clear message that some choice of law questions are no longer open for debate.
Top News Clips for the Week of August 1-7
A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of August 1-7.
Could New Jersey be the Next Delaware?
Delaware has dominated the business law scene for decades, but a recent move by its legislature has companies considering moving their legal issues, and thus their business, elsewhere. Delaware’s stumble could be an opportunity for New Jersey to woo businesses to the Garden State.
Asbestos Liability in New Jersey
Asbestos litigation has been described by one prominent plaintiffs’ lawyer as an “endless search for a solvent bystander.” Nowhere is this truer than in New Jersey, where we have experienced three waves of asbestos litigation.
An Appealing Policy Change
Did you know New Jersey is one of only eleven states where the court system is required to give tobacco companies a benefit that other defendants are denied? It’s true. As part of the Master Settlement Agreement reached in 1998, New Jersey agreed to put a cap on the amount of money tobacco companies must post as bond in order to appeal adverse verdicts in exchange for money and other concessions from the 5 tobacco companies involved in the litigation. To this day, tobacco companies are the only defendants in New Jersey that get the benefit of an appeal bond cap.
Legislative Update: Sick Leave Pulled, Credit Check Bill Passes
There were two items on the Senate’s agenda on Monday that we were keeping a close eye on - paid sick leave and credit checks on employees/potential employees. The paid sick leave bill was ultimately pulled from the calendar, but the credit check bill passed 22-16.
Top News Clips for the Week of June 20-26
A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of June 20-26.