Porreca v. City of Millville, 419 N.J. Super. 212 (App. Div. 2011).  Rule 4:42-9(a)(2) permits recovery of attorneys’ fees from a “fund in court.”  Porreca, a decision written by Judge Axelrad, held that the plaintiff’s counsel could seek a fee based on the “tangible ...

Nead v. Union Cty. Educ. Servs. Comm’n, 2011 WL 166205 (App. Div. Jan. 20, 2011).  This case, which resulted in a reversal of a trial court’s decision to dismiss an employment discrimination case, teaches several things about motions for reconsideration.  First, the decision clarifies that motions ...

Oceanside Charter School v. New Jersey Dep’t of Education, 418 N.J. Super. 1 (App. Div. 2011).  On the merits, this decision, written by Judge Carchman, stands for a simple proposition:  a recipient of government-granted funds who does not comply with the ...

Manger v. Manger, 417 N.J. Super. 370 (App. Div. 2010).  The parties in this matrimonial action settled some of their differences before a judge shortly before a scheduled trial.  They then agreed to arbitrate the remaining issues, which included the valuation and ...

In re Pet Food Products Liability Litigation, 629 F.3d 333 (3d Cir. 2010).  This lengthy opinion affirms the certification of a settlement class but reverses the approval of the settlement in one relatively limited respect.  [Disclosure:  My firm, Lite DePalma Greenberg, LLC, ...

Marioni v. Roxy Garments Delivery Co., Inc., 417 N.J. Super. 269 (App. Div. 2010).  In this opinion by Judge Fisher, a former Monmouth County Chancery judge, the Appellate Division discusses the broad equitable powers of Chancery judges in shaping relief to fit ...

West Penn Allegheny Health System, Inc. v. UPMC,  627 F.3d 85  (3d Cir. 2010).  The standards for a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim under New Jersey’s Rule 4:6-2(e) make it very difficult for such motions to succeed.  See, e.g., ...

Lucante v. Lucante, 2010 WL 4570211 (App. Div. Nov. 15, 2010).  This opinion contains a lengthy discussion of the concept of abuse of discretion.  There are a number of useful citations regarding that concept. The court also found it necessary ...

Washington Commons, LLC v. City of Jersey City, 416 N.J. Super. 555 (App. Div. 2010).  Where two prior lawsuits between the parties were already finally concluded, and no case was currently pending, a city could not enforce a condition on ...

In re R.B., 2010 WL 4340645 (App. Div. Nov. 4, 2010).  This opinion quotes a nice turn of phrase regarding the limitations on an appellate court’s review of credibility issues: “the best and most accurate record (of oral testimony) is ...