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On this date in 1980, the Supreme Court decided Trentacost v. Brussel, 82 N.J. 214 (1980).  As stated by Justice Pashman, who wrote the majority opinion, the question there was “whether a landlord who provides inadequate security for common areas of rental premises may be liable for failing to prevent a criminal assault upon a tenant.”  The Court affirmed decisions of the Law Division and the Appellate Division that had found the landlord liable and imposed a damage award. Five years earlier, the Court had decided Braitman v. Overlook Terrace Corp., 68 N.J. 368 (1975).  There,...

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