New Jersey municipalities should be aware of an important U.S. Supreme Court decision addressing the expanded free speech rights of public employees. In Lane v. Franks, a unanimous Court held that the First Amendment protected a public employee when he testified truthfully about fraud in the work place pursuant to
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
The Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently issued a precedential wage and hour decision that will impact how New Jersey municipalities pay their police and fire personnel. In Rosano v. Township of Teaneck, the court held that the municipality properly applied the Sec. 207(k) partial overtime exemption under
Earlier this month the Council on Affordable Housing (“COAH”) issued a new set of draft regulations in response to a recent ruling from the New Jersey State Supreme Court to replace, albeit for the third time, what had been commonly referred to as the “Third Round” regulations. The issuance of
Last week, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court ordered the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) to sit down and get to work. The agency had requested an extension of time to promulgate new fair housing regulations, as required by the Supreme Court of New Jersey
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
The Supreme Court of New Jersey recently upheld the New Jersey Commissioner of Education’s (Commissioner) decision to deny Quest Academy’s application to open a charter school in Montclair. The court ruled that “the Commissioner’s decision to deny Quest Academy’s charter school application was amply supported by the record and was
As New Jersey communities continue to recover from Hurricane Sandy, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court has ruled that property owners may be entitled to compensation when protective sand dunes block their views of the ocean, when the property owners’ claims arise out of the municipality’s breach
