NJ Appellate Division Shows Less Tolerance For Untimely Filed Civil Appeals
New Jersey Court Rule 2:4-1(a) requires appeals from final judgments in civil cases to be taken within 45 days of the entry of final judgment. As the Rule clearly states, the 45-day appellate period starts to run when the judgment or order appealed from is entered. Pogostin v. Leighton , 216 N.J.Super. 363, 370 (App. Div. 1987). As with most court rules there are usually exceptions, and this rule is no different. The 45-day appeals period is tolled or stayed by the limited number of events cited in Rule 2:4-3(c), including a timely motion for reconsideration filed pursuant to New Jersey Court Rule 4:49-2 within 20 days of the entry of a final judgment . In a motion for reconsideration, the dissatisfied party is required to assert that the court overlooked controlling legal precedent or made an error. Not surprisingly, motions for reconsideration are rarely granted. In many instances, litigants attempt to use motions for reconsideration as the vehicle to gain an advan