Gannet Co.’s lawsuit against borough of Raritan is one of the longest-running suits under New Jersey’s Open Public Record Act (OPRA). In the latest development, a special master appointed by the court has awarded the newspaper company $542,000 in legal fees. The case, which dates back to 2009, involves Raritan’s
A recent report from the Office of the State Comptroller finds that local governments are not adequately reviewing their legal fees. Due to this failure, local governments are missing excessive fees billed by their attorneys and are not aware of the improper payments for the legal services their attorney provide
Legislation that would overrule a recent court ruling regarding the liability of New Jersey municipalities when it comes to their emergency response operations is advancing through both the state Senate and Assembly. As we have previously discussed on this New Jersey Government & Law Blog, the New Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Division of Local Services recently released new rules to implement a 2007 law (N.J.S.A. 40A:5-48) that requires municipalities to provide user-friendly budgets to the public. The aim of the law was to provide local elected officials and members of the public with easy-to-understand budget information to help
In New Jersey Association of School Administrators v. Cerf, three New Jersey superintendents challenged the authority of the Department of Education to adopt and implement amended regulations capping superintendents’ salaries. However, the Appellate Division recently rejected these efforts, finding that the salary cap was a valid way to satisfy the
The New Jersey Supreme Court refused to give a New Jersey public employee a second bite at the apple. It held that the rejection of a claim of employer retaliation in a civil service disciplinary proceeding should bar the employee from seeking to circumvent that discipline through a subsequent Conscientious
New Jersey municipalities should begin working to ensure compliance with the Affordable Care Act, if they have not done so already. While some provisions have already taken effect, the most significant changes will be phased in over the next two years. Overall, the ACA will not drastically alter how New
New Jersey continues to be plagued by judicial vacancies, with two seats on the state’s highest court still unfilled. As a temporary fix, Chief Justice Stuart Rabner has elevated Judges Mary Cuff and Ariel Rodriguez to sit on the New Jersey Supreme Court starting October 1. As we have previously
