Crisitello v. St. Theresa School, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2020). This decision under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 et seq. (“LAD”), was the second time that this case came before the Appellate Division. The issue in today’s opinion was “whether a parochial school’s knowledge of the pregnancy of an unmarried lay teacher, who started as a teacher’s aide for toddlers, later taught art, and had no responsibility for religious instruction, can serve as the nondiscriminatory basis for the teacher’s termination for violating the school’s morals code, where the school never made any effort to determine whether any of its other employees have violated the school’s prohibition against ‘immoral conduct’ that is allegedly incorporated into each employees’ [sic] terms of employment.” read more

On this date in 1986, the Supreme Court decided Ridgewood v. Bolder Foundation, 104 N.J. 337 (1986). The issue there was “whether a taxpayer may reduce, for real estate tax assessment purposes, the value of property because of a conservation easement thereon that it granted in perpetuity to a conservation foundation.” The Bergen County Tax Board permitted the taxpayer to reduce the property’s value, but the Tax Court, substantially affirmed by the Appellate Division, took the opposite view. read more

Sullivan v. Max Spann Real Estate & Auction Co., ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2020). As Judge Firko stated in the first sentence of her opinion in this case, this was an appeal “from a July 22, 2019, order entering judgment finding that real estate auction sales contracts prepared by attorneys, licensed real estate brokers or salespersons, need not contain the three-day attorney review clause mandated by N.J. State Bar Ass’n v. N.J. Ass’n of Realtor Boards, 93 N.J. 470 (1983), and codified in N.J.A.C. 11:5-6.2(g), when a blank, pre-printed contract is sent to a bidder prior to the auction of a single family home and recommends an attorney review the contract.” The appeal produced a 2-1 decision. read more

The courts are closed today for Veterans Day, so it is an opportunity to catch up on two grants of certification that the Supreme Court issued last week. Both involve criminal matters. read more

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted certification in four new appeals. As is often the case, the nature of those matters is very varied. read more

United States v. Brito, ___ F.3d ___ (3d Cir. 2020). As discussed here, waiver of an argument occurs when a party intentionally relinquishes or abandons a contention, while forfeiture is the failure to assert an argument in timely fashion, without intent to give up that argument. That sometimes esoteric distinction became important in this criminal case, which involved an appeal of the sentence imposed by the District Court. read more

As expected, and deserved, the Senate voted yesterday to grant tenure to Justice Fernandez-Vina. The vote was 34-0. This extends the Justice’s service on the Court into February 2022, when he will turn 70. read more

Governor Murphy’s nomination of Justice Fernandez-Vina for tenure on the Supreme Court until age 70 got a unanimous endorsement from the Senate Judiciary Committee last Thursday. Senators had only positive things to say about him. The full Senate is expected to vote on tenure on Thursday, October 29. If confirmed, Justice Fernandez-Vina, now 68, could serve until February 2022, when he will turn 70. read more