Standards of review

ADA Class Action Plaintiffs Win on Standing, but Lose (For Now) on Class Certification

Mielo v. Steak ‘n Shake Operations, Inc., 897 F.3d 467 (3d Cir. 2018).  This was an appeal under Rule 23(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure from a District Court decision that granted class certification in this case under ...

The Federal Tort Claims Act Statute of Limitations

Sconiers v. United States, 896 F.3d 595 (3d Cir. 2018).  Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. §2401(b) (“FTCA”), a tort claim against the United States is “forever barred unless it is presented in writing to the appropriate Federal ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

No “Dead End” for New Jersey Civil Rights Act Plaintiff, So Her NJCRA Claim Fails

Harz v. Borough of Spring Lake, 234 N.J. 317 (2018).  The New Jersey Civil Rights Act, N.J.S.A. 10:6-1 to -2 (“NJCRA”) is, in general, the New Jersey analog to the federal Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. §1983.  In Tumpson v. ...

In Rare Cases, Attorneys’ Fees and Costs May be Awarded When Case is Voluntarily Dismissed With Prejudice

Carroll v. E One, Inc., 893 F.3d 139 (3d Cir. 2018).  Near the start of his opinion in this case, Chief Judge Smith observed that “[a]ttorneys’ fees and costs are typically not awarded when a matter is voluntarily dismissed with ...

Rice Letters, and Making Meeting Minutes of Public Bodies “Promptly Available,” Under the Open Public Meetings Act

Kean Federation of Teachers v. Morell, 233 N.J. 566 (2018).  Yesterday’s opinion by Justice LaVecchia reversed in part and affirmed as modified a decision of the Appellate Division that was reported at 448 N.J. Super. 520 (App. Div. 2017), and ...