The U.S. Supreme Court’s October 2016 Term will be most remembered for the vacancy created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. While the Court was shorthanded, it did reach decisions in several cases impacting local governments. This post offers a brief review of several key public law decisions: Heffernan
The U.S. Supreme Court’s new term began earlier this month. The Justices have already agreed to consider several cases that could impact New Jersey municipalities. This post offers a brief preview. Public Unions: In Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, the Supreme Court will reconsider its long-standing precedent in Abood v.
A Hudson County Superior Court judge recently awarded more than $280,000 in attorneys’ fees and sanctions in a defamation lawsuit against three Hoboken bloggers. The decision in Bajardi v. Pincus highlights the costly consequences of filing a frivolous SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) suit, which can often be used
In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a municipal ordinance enacted by the City of Los Angeles. In City of Los Angeles v. Patel, the majority held that the ordinance, which authorized police to inspect motel registration records without advance notice, violated the Fourth Amendment of the
The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to consider a case involving a municipal ordinance authorizing law enforcement to inspect hotel guest registries without obtaining a warrant. The ordinance at issue was passed by the City of Los Angeles; however, more than 70 other states, counties, and cities across the country
In Groark v. Timek, a New Jersey federal judge issued a ruling that has the potential to destroy the confidential nature of internal affairs files. The ruling will compel not only Atlantic City internal affairs files to be produced for the named defendant officers, but also all other officers. Further,
The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to consider whether an Arizona town’s sign ordinance violates the First Amendment, as applied to a local church. Under long-standing First Amendment precedent, content-based restrictions on speech are closely scrutinized and upheld only if they are “narrowly tailored” to a “compelling government interest.” Reed
New Jersey municipalities should be aware of a key privacy decision issued by the U.S. Supreme Court late last month. The Court held that police officers must obtain a search warrant prior to reviewing a suspect’s cell phone, even if the search is incident to an arrest. In the digital
