The Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court recently considered the application of the “temporary” employee exception to the New Jersey Tenure Act. The decision in Platia v. Board of Education of the Township of Hamilton, Mercer County provides greater clarity with regard to how the exception applies to
In a recent public employment case, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey held that a municipal employee relinquished her tenure rights when she subsequently accepted a non-secretarial position. As highlighted in DiNapoli v. Board of Education of the Township of Verona, tenure rights are largely governed by statute, and
In Finkel v. Township Committee of Township of Hopewell, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court considered the interplay between two statutes governing the timeframe for submitting municipal referendums for inclusion on a ballot. The panel concluded that municipalities must follow all applicable deadlines and declared the referendum
It is not enough to release an agenda prior to a public meeting. In order to comply with the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA), the documents must be meaningful, according to a recent decision by a New Jersey Superior Court judge. In Opderbeck v. Midland Park Board of Education, Bergen
In Advance Housing v. Teaneck, the Supreme Court of New Jersey upheld the tax-exempt status of two non-profit institutions that provide supportive housing and services. In doing so, the court rejected the arguments of several New Jersey municipalities that there was not a sufficient nexus between the housing and support
While the “Occupy” movement has died down, the legal controversy over protestor arrests has not. In December, the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled that South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and other state officials are not immune from claims by Occupy Columbia protestors who were arrested for camping
Earlier this month, Gov. Chris Christie signed legislation extending the 2012 Water Quality Planning Act. The law, which was set to expire on January 17, 2014, avoids the automatic withdrawal of sewer service areas. By way of background, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) implemented Water Quality Management
In Propark America New York, L.L.C. et al v. City of Hoboken, the Tax Court of New Jersey ruled that the operator of public parking garage was not entitled to a refund of overpaid municipal parking taxes paid to the City of Hoboken. The court reasoned that in the absence
