New Jersey

Retired In-House Counsel is Suspended for a Year Due to Second Domestic Violence Incident

A New Jersey lawyer has been suspended from practice for a year by the state supreme court an incident of domestic violence that also resulted in a 12-month jail term for him, according to the Legal Profession Blog. The incident, which resulted in Peter Jacoby’s guilty plea to the felony…

Jun 10, 2011 10:40 AM CDT

Top NJ Court Says Bloggers May Not Qualify for State Shield Law Protection Against Revealing Sources

Not every “self-appointed newsperson” is a journalist, for the purpose of applying New Jersey’s shield law protecting journalists from revealing their sources, the state supreme court ruled today. Although a Washington state woman, Shellee Hale, who posted message board comments critical of Too Much Media, sought to apply the shield…

Jun 7, 2011 9:02 PM CDT

Expanded New RICO Indictment Accuses Alleged Rogue Attorney of More Law-Firm-Related Crimes

In a new racketeering indictment that reads like the latest John Grisham legal thriller, an imprisoned New Jersey criminal defense attorney is now accused of additional crimes, including witness tampering and drug trafficking. Reiterating prior allegations that Paul Bergrin arranged to murder one witness and plotted to murder another, in…

Jun 7, 2011 5:10 PM CDT

Supreme Court Prison Cap Ruling Among Many Judicial Decisions on State Budget Cuts

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month upholding a cap on California’s prison population is one of several court decisions on the legal obligations of states as they try to balance their budgets. In Nevada, the state supreme court ruled last month that lawmakers illegally balanced the budget by using…

Jun 7, 2011 2:26 PM CDT

Is Ex-Prosecutor Accused of Trying to Arrange Witness Murders Now Cooperating with Feds?

After news that three co-defendants of a jailed New Jersey criminal defense lawyer have struck deals with the feds, observers are wondering whether attorney Paul Bergrin, 55, is cooperating, too. Bergrin is accused in a racketeering case along with his reputed mistress, another attorney, and a former client of involvement…

Jun 6, 2011 5:58 PM CDT

Report: BigLaw Attorney in Insider-Trade Case Didn’t Open Firm Docs, Allegedly Just Used Title Info

An attorney who allegedly obtained confidential information over a 17-year period while working at three major law firms before being charged earlier this year in an insider-trading case that allegedly involved over $30 million in illegal profits, has given chief information officers in the legal industry much to ponder. Wilson…

Jun 2, 2011 5:34 PM CDT

Fired Cocktail Waitresses Sue, Claim Casino Wanted Sexier and Younger Workers

Nine cocktail waitresses claim in a lawsuit that they were fired by the Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City to make way for women who were younger, slimmer and sexier. The suit follows two other discrimination suits filed in March by 46 cocktail waitresses also fired by the Resorts Casino…

Jun 1, 2011 3:35 PM CDT

Librarian Who Sued Law Firm Over False Fire Alarm Arrest Seeks to Depose Defense Lawyer

Arrested for allegedly setting off a false fire alarm at Parker McKay on June 2, 2009, a former librarian sued the New Jersey Law firm and multiple other defendants last year contending that the incident involved retaliation for her prior complaints about her work schedule and pay. Now Sheila Ciemniecki…

May 31, 2011 5:54 PM CDT

Kidnapped by Mistake, Pet Store Owner Wins Concealed Carry OK, Based on ‘Urgent’ Need, a Year Later

In January 2010, a pet store owner in New Jersey was kidnapped at gunpoint by suspects who mistook him for another man with the same name who reportedly owed them $500,000 in a business deal. Today, the New Jersey man obtained a court order authorizing him to carry a concealed…

May 26, 2011 9:31 PM CDT

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