New Jersey Attorney Law Review Blog

NJ Foreclosure Law: Joinder of Non-Owner Spouse in Residential Foreclosure Cases

  Striking a blow to news media, and representing a victory for privacy advocates, in a landmark ruling the New Jersey Appellate Division denied the Bergen Record Newspaper’s Open Public Records Act (“ OPRA “) request directed to the Bergen County Prosecutor demanding access to records concerning a person who had not been  arrested or charged with a crime. North Jersey Media Group, Inc. v. Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office , Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, Docket No. A-2393-13T3.    Click here to read the full article.

Res Judicata Applied in Federal Court – Been There And Done That

--> Revisiting the standards to dismiss a federal court complaint pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) within the Third Circuit

NJ Ethics Case Against Facebook ‘Friending’ Lawyers Can Proceed -->

  This article discusses the totality of circumstances approach applied by the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey in evaluating whether to dismiss or convert a Chapter 13 reorganization bankruptcy case filed in bad faith. The "best interests of the creditors and estate" is the principal guiding factor, such that the bankruptcy court must consider the effect of its ruling on all creditors. http://www.njlawconnect.com/chapter-13-bankruptcy-bad-faith/

  Arbitration Employment Disputes NJ Employee Handbook In a recent decision, the New Jersey Appellate Division rejected an employer's attempt to compel arbitration of discrimination based claims by relying on a company handbook that contained a written disclaimer as to creating a contract with its employees. 

Federal Appeals Court Tells Super Bowl Ticket Purchasers to Take a Hike

  You've hit the jackpot by inheriting an IRA from a parent, sibling, aunt, or uncle.  Until then you've been swallowed up with substantial debts. If you file for bankruptcy protection is the inherited IRA protected from your bankruptcy trustee and creditors? Find out what one New Jersey bankruptcy judge ruled by reading our new blog post .

  Did you know that New Jersey has a 4-year statute of limitations for breach of sales contracts?  Check out my new blog post that cautions clients and practitioners not to become confused with New Jersey's 6-year statute of limitations that applies to general breach of contract claims that do not involve the sale of goods under the Uniform Commercial Code. Absent equitable circumstances that would give rise to an equitable tolling of the statute of limitations, failing to file a breach of contract claim prior to the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations is fatal. http://www.njlawconnect.com/litigation/statute-limitations-breach-sales-contracts-ucc/

  In a published decision issued on January 12, 2016, the New Jersey Appellate Division confirmed that the same 4-year statute of limitations period for asserting fraudulent asset transfer claims applies in commercial transactions and tort claims regardless whether or not the creditor has obtained a judgment. Rosario, et al. vs. Marco Construction and Management, Inc., et al. , Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, Docket No. A-1562-14T3 (July 12, 2016).  New Jersey Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act The New Jersey Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act ("UFTA") provides creditors the opportunity to recover property that judgment debtors have attempted to put beyond their reach. Specifically, the UFTA prohibits any transfer intended "to hinder, delay, or defraud any creditor of the debtor." N.J.S.A. 25:2-25(a). The UFTA contains a 4-year statute of limitations period to file suit "after the transfer was made or the obligation was incurred, or...

--> In this post I discuss a recent New Jersey appellate court decision which affirmed a trial court's decision to bar the use of expert testimony in a legal malpractice case because the expert's opinions were net opinions.   

Pitfalls of Terminating New Jersey Minority Shareholder’s Employment

Tenant’s Rights Under New Jersey Foreclosure Fairness Act

  In a written opinion issued on January 12, 2015 Bergen County Assignment Judge Peter E. Doyne ordered that the State of New Jersey and several townships comply with public records requests made by North Jersey Media Group, the owner of The Record newspaper, concerning an incident that resulted in police officers shooting and killing an African American suspected of participating in vehicle theft and eluding police. North Jersey Media Group, Inc. v. Township of Lyndhurst, et al. , Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Docket No.: BER-L19048-14. Read more . 

  In an unpublished decision issued on December 11, 2014, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey was confronted with deciding whether a corporation was the successor in interest to the plaintiff's former commercial tenant such that the corporation should be held liable for tenant's breach of the lease.  40 Eisenhower Drive, LLC v. Karoon Capital Markets, Inc., et al. , Docket No.: A-2620-12T4 (App. Div. Dec. 11, 2014).  Ruling in the affirmative, the appeals court provides a salient summary of New Jersey law on successor liability in the context of corporate law.  Generally,"when a company sells its assets to another [entity], the acquiring company is not liable . . . simply because it has succeeded to the ownership of the assets of the seller." Lefever v. K.P. Hovnanian Enters. , 160 N.J. 307, 310 (1999). There are, however, four exceptions to this principle:  (1) the successor expressly or impliedly assumes the predecess...

In a July 31, 2014 unpublished decision, a Bergen County judge fined a mortgage lender $26,125 in legal fees for duping a 70-year old borrower into a refinance transaction that benefited only the lender.   Finding that the lender committed an unconscionable commercial practice by charging the borrower over $11,000 in mortgage closing costs that would have taken her 5+ years to recoup based on the paltry savings of $63/month from her monthly mortgage payment, the Court chastised the lender for acting in its own self-interest. A more detailed analysis about this case appears on our website blog: http://njlawconnect.com/litigation/bergen-county-chancery-judge-hits-mortgage-lender-with-26000-in-counsel-fees-for-violating-new-jersey-consumer-fraud-act/

What is my business worth?   You say $100,000, she says $1,000,000.  Whether arguing with an irate spouse in the context of a divorce case or a business partner in a partnership dispute, the answer is often difficult and expensive to determine. As the New Jersey Supreme Court observed in Balsamides v. Protameen Chemicals, Inc. , 160 N.J. 352, 368 (1999) (“ Balsamides “), and Lawson Mardon Wheaton, Inc. v. Smith , 160 N.J. 383, 397 (1999) (“ Lawson “), valuation of a closely-held business is not an exact science. See also Bowen v. Bowen , 96 N.J. 36, 44 (1984) (quoting Lavene v. Lavene , 162 N.J. Super. 187, 193 (Ch. Div. 1978) (on remand) ( Lavene II )); John R. MacKay, II, 2 New Jersey Business Corporations § 14-6(d)(1) (2d ed. 1996). In Lavene v. Lavene , 148 N.J. Super. 267 (App. Div.), certif. denied , 75 N.J. 28 (1977) ( Lavene I ), where the Appellate Division held that the husband’s 43% interest in a closely-held corporation “constitute...

In an unpublished decision, a New Jersey appeals court clarified the legal requirements that credit card debt purchasers must meet in order to pursue collection from consumer account holders. Main Street Acquisition Corp. v. Nemeth (App. Div., April 1, 2014). Click here to read the full post.

In a recent unpublished decision, the New Jersey Appellate Division upheld a trial court's sanctioning HSBC more than $54,000 due to the bank's filing of a foreclosure suit without being able to prove that it holds the proper chain of title to the underlying mortgage and promissory note. HSBC Bank vs. Nini, A-1941-11T1 (App. Div. , Unpublished, April 30, 2014).  The irony of this decision is that despite claiming to be owed more than $700,000 on a property valued at only $361,000, the lender was forced to foot the bill for about half of the mortgagor's legal fees and expenses. Talk about getting a free ride!   Click here to read a more in-depth discussion of this Appellate Division case.