Each year, the Civil Practice Committee recommends changes to the Part I, II, and IV Court rules, which govern civil practice in the Courts of the State of New Jersey.
I cannot tell you how often someone presents themselves to our office following a contract dispute that involves a family member or friend on the other side. So often when you need a service of some sort or another you turn to family or friends. This, of course, makes sense but when we do that […]
Who says land use law is boring??? The NY Times reports on Jan 8 that Kate Hepburn’s former home in Fenwick Conn. is the subject of heated land use litigation. Seems the current owner had the temerity to erect 2, twelve inch square granite posts at his driveway entrance w/ the address number engraved. These ‘egregious’ […]
The New Jersey Judicisary is providing free copies of active case records to New Jersey attorneys and pro se litigants whose case files have been lost or damages as a result of Hurricane Sandy. More information can be found on the New Jersey Judiciary website http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/
Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan was successful today in obtaining a Temporary Restraining Order, which restrains temporarily Paramus from “forbidding or precluding any business activity on any Sunday” or otherwise enforcing the Borough’s Blue Laws until such time as Governor Chris Christie rescinds his order or upon a final hearing on the matter. In a […]
In an unpublished decision just out this week entited, Street v. Hothem, App Div A-5077-10T3, the Appellate Division reaffirmed that the Consumer Fraud Act can apply to the landlord/tenant relationship. The case dealt with a landlord’s violations of the Truth in Renting Act. The Truth in Renting Act provides, in part, that “No landlord shall […]
Parties in New Jersey are permitted to charge relatively high rates of interest in many transactions. In the state, there are two separate types of usury, civil and criminal. The levels of interest rates constituting civil and criminal usury, and the exceptions thereto, are governed by separate statutes. Civil usury rates in New Jersey are […]
The Offer of Judgment Rule is a mechanism useful to both Plaintiffs and Defendants in order to leverage settlement of cases in New Jersey. There are, however, several limitations as to the Rule’s applicability. In the case of Crudup v. Marrero, 57 N.J. 353 (1971), the New Jersey Supreme Court explained that the rules permitting […]
As attorneys who represent both individual and corporate clients, we view New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act as a double-edged sword. If you are an individual consumer, New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act has bestowed upon you an avenue to seek damages (triple damages) if you have been the victim of “any unconscionable commercial practice, deception, […]
A Landlord’s Lament: Lead Paint In January of 2008, the New Jersey Legislature passed a law, which has been codified as N.J.S.A. 46:8-28.5, requiring lead paint inspection to tenant-occupied single or two family residential properties, including two-family properties in which one unit is owner-occupied. This requires landlords of these units to register with the […]