While the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) is an invaluable legal tool for businesses seeking to protect their trade secrets, it does not help when the disclosing party is a government agency. In a recent decision, a Massachusetts federal court held a business could not rely on the DTSA to
The New Jersey Open Public Meeting Act (“OPMA”) does not contain a fee-shifting provision that would allow a plaintiff who brings a successful enforcement action to recover his/her legal costs. However, an ongoing OPMA lawsuit is relying on a novel legal theory to recover counsel fees under the fee-shifting provision contained
The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether federal agencies can challenge patents under the America Invents Act (“AIA”). The case, Return Mail Inc. v. United States Postal Service, centers on whether the government qualifies as a “person” who may petition to institute review proceedings under the AIA. Legal
Two New Jersey teachers have filed a lawsuit challenging the Workplace Democracy Enhancement Act. The complaint against Gov. Phil Murphy, the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), and Township of Ocean Education Association alleges that the law violates the teachers’ First Amendment rights in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Janus
Gov. Phil Murphy recently signed legislation into law that extends the New Jersey Prompt Payment Act to include local governments, school boards and independent authorities. The law, which already applies to state government agencies, aims to ensure the prompt payment of public contracts for the purchase of goods and services and
One of the first cases considered by the U.S. Supreme Court this term is of particular interest to New Jersey public employers. The issue before the Court is whether the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) exempts political subdivisions of a state with less than 20 employees from the Act’s protections. The
Morris County is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether excluding religious institutions from receiving taxpayer funds as part of a historic preservation program conflicts with the Supreme Court’s decision in Trinity Lutheran v. Comer and the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause. Facts of the Case In 2002, the
In August, Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation into law that authorizes New Jersey counties to alter the real property assessment calendar, provided the relevant county board of taxation approves. The new law (formerly A-538/S2257) specifically allows any county to operate under the alternative real property assessment dates established in the “Real
