Lawmakers and government officials, business leaders, and lawyers are invited to attend the New Jersey Civil Justice Institute’s 2nd Annual Winter Policy Forum. This year’s event, which is being held on Tuesday, March 15, from Noon-1:30 PM, at the Trenton Country Club, will feature a keynote address from Judge Glenn A. Grant, J.A.D., the Acting Administrative Director of New Jersey Courts.
The rules that govern what cases can come before the court, and how they are to proceed, play as big of a role in deciding the outcome of many disputes as the substantive law at issue does. That’s why we at NJCJI were quite eager to see what this year’s Rules Committees Reports would contain. This year’s Civil Practice Committee report is substantial, and we are still reviewing much of it, but below is a summary of a few key items of interest.
Each quarter, the New Jersey Court System publishes Judiciary Times, a newsletter highlighting statewide and local news stories about the New Jersey courts, including new programs and services offered by the Judiciary, recent events held around the state and accomplishments of judges and staff.
A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of January 30-February 5.
Businesses be warned, Harold Hoffman has a new shtick. A few years ago, New Jersey Attorney Harold Hoffman made headlines when the court ruled that he could not bring a New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act suit against a company selling a penis enhancement product without actually trying the product. Now he is in the news again, this time for suing the popular Jewish dating website JDate for emailing him.
Few would dispute the important role that judges play in our state, and the necessary service they provide to our society. Judges preside over the most significant matters—criminal trials and sentencing, parental terminations, complex business lawsuits and significant civil actions with catastrophic injuries and large payouts. In recent years, the complexity of cases in New Jersey state courts has increased. However, the salaries of judges have not only not risen, but have been reduced when measured against the cost of living, and the actual take-home income of judges has been reduced by virtue of pension and health insurance contributions made by judges. New Jersey has the third highest cost of living of all states in the nation, a cost of living which continues to increase. Yet, state court judges in New Jersey have not received a raise since January 2008.
A lot of ridiculous lawsuits were filed in New Jersey this year, but only one can be crowned 2015’s Most Ludicrous Lawsuit. This year, the esteemed honor goes to the man who tried to sue Applebee’s because his fajitas were too hot to pray over.
Earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court issued a legal smackdown to courts in California that were asserting that state arbitration law took precedence over federal case law. The 6-3 ruling is not a sweeping change that is going to impact all arbitration agreement everywhere, but a reminder that the Supremacy Clause exists for a reason.
The American Tort Reform Association has released its annual “Judicial Hellholes” report, and New Jersey is once again recognized as a state on the brink of becoming a litigation hot spot. ATRA notes that our state’s consumer protection laws are far from mainstream, and our court system is becoming hostile to arbitration agreements, in direct contravention of federal law.
A selection of the need-to-know civil justice news for the week of December 5-11.
