High-Low Agreement Did Not Permit Plaintiff to Recover Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses Above the “High” Figure

Serico v. Rothberg, 234 N.J. 168 (2018).  As discussed here, last year, the Appellate Division ruled in this medical malpractice case that a “high-low agreement” is a contract, and that where the agreement did not provide for plaintiff to recover ...

Class of Kia Vehicles Owners Was Entitled to Damages Based on Aggregate Figures Rather Than Individual Damage Assessments

Little v. Kia Motors America, Inc., 455 N.J. Super. 411 (App. Div. 2018).  Class actions notoriously take a long time.  But the case in which Judge Koblitz issued a decision for her Appellate Division panel today is nearly old enough ...

Motor Vehicle Commission Wrongly Sanctioned Car Dealers Without Holding Hearings

Allstars Auto Group, Inc. v. New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, 234 N.J. 150 (2018).  The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (“NJMVC”) imposed fines and suspensions on eight car dealers for alleged violations of various NJMVC regulations.  The dealers, all acting ...

Courts Find Attorneys’ Fee Disputes “Hellish,” Especially Where “The Adversaries Fan the Flames at Virtually Every Opportunity”

United States of America ex rel. Palmer v. C&D Technologies, Inc., 897 F.3d 128 (3d Cir. 2018).  Today’s opinion by Judge Greenberg (no relation) in a False Claims Act case involved the issue of an attorneys’ fee award to the ...

Res Ipsa Loquitur and Elevator Doors

McDaid v. Aztec West Condominium Association, 234 N.J. 130 (2018).  As Jutice Albin stated in the first two sentences of today’s opinion for a unanimous Supreme Court, “Res ipsa loquitur is an equitable doctrine that allows, in appropriate circumstances, a ...

The Third Circuit Clarifies CAFA’s “Local Controversy Exception” on Unusual Facts

Walsh v. Defenders, Inc., 894 F.3d 583 (3d Cir. 2018).  The “local controversy” exception to federal jurisdiction over putative class actions under the so-called Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, 28 U.S.C. §1332(d) (“CAFA”), requires certain uniquely local cases that were ...

As the End of the Term Nears, The Supreme Court Takes Two More Cases

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted review in two more cases.  In Zimmerman v. Sussex County Educational Services Commission, the question presented, as phrased by the Supreme Court Clerk’s Office, is “Did the defendant-employer violate the tenure rights ...

The 2018-19 General Assignment Order

Chief Justice Rabner has issued the General Assignment Order for 2018-19.  It is available here.  The Appellate Division lineup again features Judge Messano as Presiding Judge for Administration and Judge Sabatino as Deputy Presiding Judge for Administration.  Those two judges, ...

Judges Mitterhoff, Natali, and Firko Are Promoted to the Appellate Division

Chief Justice Rabner has announced the elevation of three judges to the Appellate Division.  Two of them, Judges Firko and Natali, have been serving on temporary assignment to the Appellate Division since April 16, 2018, as discussed here.  The third ...

McCarrell Choice of Law Analysis Goes Against Legal Malpractice Plaintiff

MTK Food Services, Inc. v. Sirius America Ins. Co., 455 N.J. Super. 307 (App. Div. 2018).  In McCarrell v. Hoffman-LaRoche, Inc., 227 N.J. 569 (2017), discussed here, the Supreme Court adopted section 142 of the Restatement (Second) of Conflicts of ...