A&M Farm & Garden Center v. American Sprinkler Mechanical, LLC, 423 N.J. Super. 528 (App. Div. 2012).  No matter how often the courts inveigh against the failure of attorneys and parties to follow the detailed procedures of Rule 4:23-5 as regards dismissals with prejudice for failure to make discovery, cases presenting that problem continue to pop up.  This case, in which Judge Espinosa wrote for the Appellate Division and reversed a dismi

Tortorice v. Vanartsdalen, 422 N.J. Super. 242 (App. Div. 2011).  A fit natural parent has a fundamental right to autonomy in child-rearing decisions, so that a grandparent who seeks visitation rights must show that visitation is necessary to avoid identifiable harm to the child.  Here, because the parents of the child at issue had serious drug addiction problems, custody had been given to defendant, one of the grandparents.  Other grandparents, the plaintiffs, sought a visitatio

Shakoor Supermarkets, Inc. v. Old Bridge Tp. Planning Bd., 420 N.J. Super. 193 (App. Div. 2011).  This case dealt with the issue of how specific a public notice of a development application under the Municipal Land Use Law, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. (“MLUL”), must be.  That issue does not arise frequently, but the panel, with Judge Espinosa writing the opinion, had no trouble resolving the appeal here.

The development applic