New Jersey

NJ High Court Orders $500M in Extra School Funding, Short of the $1.7B Feared by the Governor

The New Jersey Supreme Court in a 3-2 ruling has ordered the state schools to spend additional money on public education in poor school districts, an amount estimated to be $500 million. The figure is less than the $1.7 billion feared by Gov. Chris Christie, the Associated Press reports. The…

May 24, 2011 3:23 PM CDT

Calling Mom Senile, Old and the B-Word Doesn’t Justify Restraining Order, Appeals Court Says

A New Jersey appeals court has overturned a restraining order against a defendant who stole from his 88-year-old mother and called her a “senile old bitch.” A trial judge had found the mother’s complaints about her 56-year-old son to be credible, and that the son was underestimating his mother. The…

May 19, 2011 12:18 PM CDT

Appeals Court Revives Lawyer’s Suit over Online Sexual Enhancement Pills

A lawyer who was dissatisfied with the sexual enhancement pills he bought over the Internet will be able to proceed with his lawsuit because of a favorable ruling by a New Jersey appeals court. Lawyer Harold Hoffman of Englewood will be able to sue in New Jersey, despite an online…

May 16, 2011 12:56 PM CDT

Jury Awards $1.4M to Ex-Prosecutor Fired After Blowing Whistle on Municipal Judge

A former contract prosecutor for Warren Township has been awarded $1.4 million by a Morris County, N.J., jury in a whistle-blower suit. It contended she was fired after she complained that a politically connected municipal judge had taken the bench while inebriated and acted unethically. The New Jersey Supreme Court…

May 11, 2011 11:12 PM CDT

After 1-Year Standoff, NJ Gov and Senate Agree on Plan to Consider State Supreme Court Nominee

Ending a one-year standoff over Gov. Chris Christie’s refusal, in defiance of tradition, to reappoint a sitting state supreme court judge, the New Jersey Senate today marked the one-year anniversary of his nomination of a replacement jurist by announcing that it would consider attorney Anne Patterson for a seat on…

May 3, 2011 5:54 PM CDT

Mom Sues After Stock Photo of Her Daughter Is Used on Anti-Abortion Billboard

A New Jersey mother says in a lawsuit that she had to explain the facts of life to her 6-year-old daughter after a stock photo of the girl appeared on an anti-abortion billboard aimed at African-Americans. The suit filed by mother Tricia Fraser says the group Life Always and its…

Apr 27, 2011 4:43 PM CDT

Inspired by Son’s Description of Law Classes, Dad Pursues Degree at Rutgers, Too

Updated: It isn’t unusual for a son or daughter to follow a parent into law practice, even attending the same law school. But Bill Popovich and his son have followed that program in reverse. Talking with his son, also named Bill Popovich, about what he’d learned every day in classes…

Apr 25, 2011 9:37 PM CDT

Man Accused of Driving Rutgers Roommate to Suicide Faces New Grand Jury Charges

A grand jury in Middlesex County, N.J., has issued new charges against an 18-year-old former Rutgers University freshman who is accused of driving his roommate to suicide by secretly recording a same-sex romantic dorm encounter with the help of another student. Dharun Ravi now faces allegations of witness and evidence…

Apr 20, 2011 5:32 PM CDT

When Is a Law Firm Allegedly Part of a RICO Criminal Enterprise? 3rd Circuit Explains

A federal district judge erred in dismissing racketeering counts against a prominent New Jersey defense attorney and former prosecutor accused of using his law offices as part of a criminal enterprise, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday. Although the judge was understandably concerned about the complexity of the case against…

Apr 13, 2011 3:46 PM CDT

3rd Circuit Says Ex-Prosecutor Accused of Plotting to Murder Witness Must Also Face RICO Charges

Criminal defense lawyer Paul Bergrin must face federal racketeering charges in addition to a lengthy list of other counts, a federal appeals court has ruled. Although a federal judge in Newark last year said the crimes of which he and other defendants are accused are too loosely connected to establish…

Apr 12, 2011 4:29 PM CDT

Lawyer Gets Enhanced Sanction (a Reprimand) for Ignoring Both Client and Disciplinary Authorities

The New Jersey Supreme Court imposed an enhanced sanction on a lawyer who not only failed to return a former real estate client’s many phone calls but didn’t refund $250 from an escrow account, reports the Legal Profession Blog. But that was because Christopher McCarthy also didn’t respond to a…

Apr 12, 2011 10:53 AM CDT

Middleman Pleads Guilty in $34M Insider-Trading Case, Says Lawyer Stole Info from 4th BigLaw Firm

A man accused of being a middleman in an alleged insider-trading operation that prosecutors say reaped some $34 million in illegal profits over a 17-year period pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Newark, N.J., to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and two counts of securities fraud.…

Apr 12, 2011 10:33 AM CDT

Nixed for Urination-Monitor Job Over Birth Gender, Worker Files Unusual Discrimination Suit

Born physically female, 39-year-old El’Jai Devoureau is now male according to his birth certificate, driver’s license and social security card, following a course of male hormones and sex-change surgery. But after he was hired by Urban Treatment Associates in Camden to watch men provide urine samples at a drug-treatment center—to…

Apr 11, 2011 5:24 PM CDT

Accused Middleman ID’d, Expected to Plead in Alleged Insider Info Theft By BigLaw Attorney

A middleman who allegedly passed confidential merger and acquisition information from a BigLaw attorney to a trader involved in a $109 million insider-trading scheme is expected to plead guilty as early as today to charges of conspiracy and securities fraud, reports the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.), relying on unidentified…

Apr 11, 2011 10:02 AM CDT

Former Prosecutor and Chief City Judge Admits Arranging for Innocent Man to Make False Confession

A former New Jersey prosecutor and chief municipal judge in the state’s biggest city has pleaded guilty to accepting a $3,500 payment in exchange for arranging for an innocent man to make a false confession in a gun-possession case. In addition, Clifford Minor, 68, who runs a Newark criminal defense…

Apr 6, 2011 8:57 PM CDT