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Appellate Division Finds Attorney’s Fees To Be Excessive And An Abuse Of Discretion
Excessive fees and abuse of discretion were the hot topic of the recent unreported decision in the Appellate Division. In Garzon v. Morris County Golf Club, A-1100-21 (App. Div. December 23, 2022), the Appellate Division agreed with Respondent that the Judge of Compensation abused his discretion in issuing excessive and unsupported…
Read More >The Federal Trade Commission Unveils Proposal to Ban Non-Compete Clauses Nationwide
In January, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) proposed a new rule that would prohibit employers from entering into, attempting to enter into, or maintaining a non-compete clauses with their employees. The FTC has preliminarily found that non-compete clauses constitute unfair methods of competition under Section 5 of the Federal Trade…
Read More >New Jersey Mini-Warn Act Amendments Effective April 10, 2023
On January 10, 2023, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed Assembly Bill No. 4768. Pursuant to the bill, the Legislature’s rather significant amendments to New Jersey’s WARN Act—formally titled the “Millville Dallas Airmotive Plant Job Loss Notification Act”—will become effective on April 10, 2023. The amendments, while approved in January…
Read More >Even Respondents Are Entitled To Due Process – Appellate Division Vacates Order Imposing Assessments And Penalties When Respondent Counsel Was Not Permitted To Be Heard
The facts of Safet Saiti v. Garden Homes, A-1328-20, decided October 11, 2022, are simple. On September 3, 2020 an Order for permanency was entered in favor of petitioner. For reasons unknown, payment was not made by respondent within the required sixty-day period from the date of the Order and…
Read More >Good Things Come In Small Package – Appellate Division Reverses A Conflict Of Interest Opinion Against An Insurance Carrier – Appointed Attorney Defending A Worker’s Compensation Claim Filed By A Shareholder Of The Employer
On October 28, 2022, the Appellate Division issued its decision in Robert Alam v. Ameribuilt Contractors, A-2114-21, approved for publication that same day. We congratulate the Workers’ Compensation team here at Brown & Connery which appealed the case on behalf of its client, and succeeded in getting a reversal on…
Read More >Appellate Division’s Affirmance Of A Respondent Verdict Restates The Oft-Forgotten Concept That An Injury Does Not Automatically Result In An Award Of Disability
On June 1, 2022 the Appellate Division decided the case of Lindell v. W.H. Industries, Inc., A-1815-20. This decision affirmed the dismissal with prejudice of three separate Claim Petitions filed by petitioner for incidents of June 27 and September 14,2007 and August 12,2009. All three claims alleged injuries to her…
Read More >President Biden Signs Bill To Nullify Pre-Dispute Arbitration Clauses For Sexual Harassment And Abuse Claims
On Thursday, February 10, 2022, Congress approved legislation that bars the use of forced arbitration to address sexual harassment and abuse claims in the workplace, entitled Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (the “Act”). President Biden signed the Act into law on March 3,…
Read More >Appellate Division Disproves The Old Saying “If At First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again” In Litigation Involving Out Of Time Appeals And Frivolous Filings. Respondents Need To Be Aware Of The Frivolous Litigation Statute.
The unreported Appellate decision in Townsend v. New Transit, A-0559-20, decided February 2, 2022, should now be required reading for all pro se litigants. Claude Townsend, a bus driver for New Jersey Transit, was involved in a bus accident on January 29, 2008. He filed a Claim Petition through counsel,…
Read More >Key Highlights On The U.S. Supreme Court Decision Concerning OSHA and CMS COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
On January 13, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court reached split decisions on vaccine mandates issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”), respectively. Here are some of the key highlights. CMS Mandate for Healthcare Workers is Upheld In November 2021,…
Read More >On January 11, Governor Murphy Reinstated The Public Health Emergency To Respond To The Omicron COVID Variant; Does Reactivation Of The COVID Presumption Statute Naturally Follow?
On May 11, 2020, as a response to the “original” COVID pandemic New Jersey enacted a COVID presumption statute which created a rebuttable presumption that “essential employees” who contracted COVID19 did so as the result of their employment. That law defined essential employees as employees who are in the public…
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