State v. Locascio, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2012).  Expert opinion is an area in which decisions in the criminal realm find their way into civil cases as well.  For example, State v. Kemp, 174 N.J. 412 (2002), is often cited in cases of any type that involve the proper scope of expert testimony.  Today’s decision, written by Judge Sabatino, will doubtless be frequently cited in the future as well.  In a nutshell, the Appellate Division held that a medical examiner who had been qualified as an expert in pathology had gone beyond the bounds of his expertise when he attempted to testify about matters of biomechanics and accident reconstruction. read more

Even Justice Holmes, one of the greatest Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, sometimes made extremely bad decisions.  Eighty five years ago today, in Buck v. Bell, 274 U.S. 200 (1927), Justice Holmes, joined by all other Justices except one, issued perhaps his worst ruling as a Justice.  A gathering of legal scholars last year rated Buck v. Bell as one of the five worst Supreme Court of the United States decisions ever.  read more

Today, May 1, is Law Day.  According to 36 U.S.C. §113, “Law Day, U.S.A., is a special day of celebration by the people of the United States in appreciation of their liberties and the reaffirmation of their loyalty to the United States and of their rededication to the ideals of equality and justice under law in their relations with each other and with other countries; and for the cultivation of the respect for law that is so vital to the democratic way of life.”  read more

Rubessa v. Warner, 2012 WL ________ (App. Div. April 30, 2012).  In spite of frequent warnings that interlocutory appeals improperly brought as final will be dismissed, the Appellate Division occasionally overlooks that distinction and grants leave to appeal nunc pro tunc even though an order appealed from is less than final.  In this personal injury negligence case, one defendant won summary judgment, but the claims against the other defendant remained unresolved.  Plaintiff then dismissed his claims against that defendant without prejudice to their reinstatement and filed an appeal of the summary judgment as to the other defendant. read more

Township of Neptune v. New Jersey Dep’t of Environmental Protection, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2012).  The Township of Neptune sued the DEP in the Law Division for an order requiring the DEP to perform certain dredging of a waterway and to provide a place for temporary placement of the dredged matter.  The Law Division ruled that because Neptune’s action was, in reality, an attempt to seek review of an action or inaction by DEP, the Appellate Division had exclusive jurisdiction over the case.  The case was then transferred to the Appellate Division, which rejected Neptune’s position and dismissed the complaint.  Judge Yannotti wrote the panel’s opinion. read more

Konop v. Rosen, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2012).  Trial lawyers and appellate lawyers take heed!  The Appellate Division, speaking through an encyclopedic opinion by Judge Messano, has issued one of the relatively rare appellate opinions about the application of the hearsay rule and a number of its exceptions.  read more

A recent posting about citations to Wikipedia in the federal Circuit Courts of Appeals leads to the question of what the attitude is toward Wikipedia in the Supreme Court of New Jersey, the Appellate Division, and the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.  The answer seems to be that the courts are not necessarily enthusiastic about Wikipedia. read more

On this date in 1955, the Supreme Court of New Jersey decided Stark v. Reingold, 18 N.J. 251 (1955).  The case involved charges and counter-charges of wrongful conduct by partners in several related businesses.  The Court’s unanimous opinion, written by Justice Jacobs, is one of the earliest decisions in the modern era to establish important principles of fiduciary duty law in New Jersey. read more