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New Jersey
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May 24, 2013
Lupin Must Produce Generic Info In Warner Chilcott Suit
A New Jersey federal judge on Thursday approved Warner Chilcott Co. LLC’s request for documents regarding the development of Lupin Ltd.’s proposed generic version of the chewable oral contraceptive Generess Fe, but denied a deposition request in the ongoing patent battle.
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May 24, 2013
JPML Head Says New Mix Of Cases Makes Panel More Picky
The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has rejected a higher percentage of centralization requests in recent years, a trend the head of the panel told Law360 was due in part to a rise in patent cases and other types of litigation he said were more likely to center on individual issues.
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May 24, 2013
NJ Plan To Speed Civil Cases Stirs Hope For Pretrial Reform
New Jersey Chief Justice Stuart Rabner's call to make civil actions in the state less time-consuming and more affordable has advocates hoping for limits on discovery, greater certainty over trial dates and other reforms that they say would expedite cases while preserving litigants' rights.
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May 24, 2013
NJ Law Commission Mulls Tweaking Underground Utilities Law
The New Jersey Law Revision Commission on Thursday discussed plans to alter a state law designed to protect citizens from dangerous excavation near utility equipment after the state’s Supreme Court ruled a section of the law that mandates dispute arbitration is unconstitutional.
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May 24, 2013
Law360 Names 10 FCPA Powerhouse Firms
Many savvy law firms boast their expertise in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters, but an elite group of 10 firms have emerged as true leaders in the fast-growing field, earning them a spot on Law360’s inaugural list of FCPA Powerhouses.
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May 24, 2013
DOL Rule Backs Groups' H-2B Challenge, 3rd Circ. Hears
Employer groups told the Third Circuit on Thursday that both a new U.S. Department of Labor rule changing how prevailing wages are calculated for the H-2B foreign worker program and a recent Eleventh Circuit decision against the agency bolster their challenge to a 2011 H-2B wage rule.
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May 24, 2013
Conrail Denies Liability For NJ Derailment, Chemical Spill
In a brief filed Tuesday in Pennsylvania state court, Consolidated Rail Corp. said it could not be held liable as a carrier of hazardous material for alleged injuries suffered by a group of nearly two dozen New Jersey residents after a November train derailment and chemical spill.
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May 24, 2013
'Kids For Cash' Judge Loses Conviction Appeal In 3rd Circ.
One of two Pennsylvania judges found guilty in the state’s notorious “kids for cash” scandal failed to dodge 28 years in prison and nearly $1.2 million in restitution fees Friday as the Third Circuit affirmed his sentence and the bulk of his conviction.
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May 24, 2013
FTC Defends Cybersecurity Authority In Wyndham Suit
The Federal Trade Commission is mounting a fierce defense of its ability to hold companies accountable for the security of consumer data they collect, blasting attempts by Wyndham Worldwide Corp. to escape a New Jersey suit over a series of costly lapses.
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May 24, 2013
NJ Judge Asks 3rd Circ. To Pick Venue In Short-Sell Suit
A New Jersey federal judge on Thursday asked the Third Circuit to decide whether a racketeering and securities fraud suit alleging Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., Knight Capital Americas LP, UBS Securities LLC and others engaged in manipulative naked short-selling belongs in state or federal court.
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May 23, 2013
Watson, Apotex Settle Azilect Patent Infringement Suit
A New Jersey federal judge on Thursday dismissed Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.'s claims that generic-drug makers Watson Laboratories Inc. and Apotex Corp. infringed its patents for the Parkinson's disease drug Azilect, saying the parties have reached confidential settlement and licensing agreements.
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May 23, 2013
Litigation Financier Can't Recoup Rival's Payout: NJ Court
A New Jersey appeals court ruled Thursday that a litigation financing company fighting a competitor over the proceeds of a hospital lawsuit can't recover the competitor's reimbursement because the competitor funded an attorney in the case, and not the litigation.
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May 23, 2013
Ex-Pfizer Counsel Tapped For NJ County Prosecutor Job
A former federal prosecutor and Pfizer Inc. attorney has been tapped to serve as the chief law enforcement officer for Union County, N.J., the state's attorney general announced Thursday.
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May 23, 2013
$22M Sale Of Bankrupt Big M's Assets Gets Judge's OK
A New Jersey bankruptcy judge on Thursday signed off on Canadian clothing retailer YM Inc.'s $22 million purchase of the assets of rival Big M Inc., the bankrupt owner of the clothing stores Mandee, Annie Sez and Afaze.
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May 23, 2013
NJ Lawmakers Rip Christie On Housing Funds
New Jersey lawmakers on Thursday waded into the state's challenge of a court order that blocked it from taking some $140 million from municipal affordable housing trust funds, arguing that Gov. Chris Christie's administration has misrepresented a law allowing the seizure of that money.
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May 23, 2013
Chubb, Insurance Agent Sued Over Yacht Club's Sandy Woes
Whacked by Superstorm Sandy, a New Jersey yacht club is accusing its insurance agent of failing to procure sufficient coverage and a Chubb Group company of improperly underpaying its claims and fraudulently selling an insurance program that was supposed to be the “Cadillac” of policies.
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May 23, 2013
DOT Distributes $3.7B For Sandy Repairs To Transit Agencies
The U.S. Department of Transportation said Thursday that it has allocated $3.7 billion to the four New York and New Jersey transit agencies hit the hardest by Superstorm Sandy, in the latest round of funding from a $10.9 billion transit repair package.
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May 23, 2013
Aetna Wins NJ Surgical Center Coverage Row
Aetna Health Inc. on Wednesday defeated a lawsuit filed by an outpatient surgical center claiming the insurer's refusal to cover procedures violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, when a New Jersey federal judge ruled Aetna's decision was supported by substantial evidence.
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May 22, 2013
FERC Nixes Permit For Tidal Energy Project On NJ River
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday denied a preliminary permit for a tidal energy project proposed for New Jersey’s Manasquan River, after ruling the applicant, Natural Currents Energy Services LLC, had failed to follow regulatory guidelines in its exploration of a prior, nearly identical project.
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May 22, 2013
NJ Court Orders DEP To Revisit Brownfield Cleanup Loan
A New Jersey appellate court on Wednesday ordered the state’s environmental regulator to reconsider a grant application for contamination cleanup costs from a property owner that says the regulator capriciously denied its application due to a change in its corporate structure.
Expert Analysis
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When Rights Of Publicity Trump 1st Amendment
An important practice tip that flows from the Third Circuit's opinion in Ryan Hart v. Electronic Arts Inc. is that talismanic invocation of the First Amendment does not resolve the legal problem of balancing that amendment with competing rights such as the right of publicity, says Ronald Katz of Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP.
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Rise Of The Machines — Predictive Coding Goes Mainstream
The pros of using predictive coding far outweigh the cons. Given the heavy pressure on law firms and in-house counsel to reduce discovery costs, as well as the Justice Department's recent stance on the subject, it appears predictive coding will continue to emerge from the obscure world of legal technology to the mainstream of legal practice, say Michael Moscato and Myles Bartley of Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
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Past Its Prime: Weedo V. Stone-E-Brick
It is time for the New Jersey Supreme Court to take up again the construction-defect coverage issues first addressed in Weedo v. Stone-E-Brick Inc. and to update them for the post-1986 commercial general liability coverage of subcontractors’ faulty workmanship, says Carl Salisbury of Kilpatrick Townsend Stockton LLP.
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Calif. Chemical Safety Rules Push Constitutional Envelope
Impatience with the pace of Toxic Substances Control Act reform at the federal level is understandable, but substituting individual state action for a perceived lack of federal action may be the classic example of a cure which is worse than the disease. Many think California’s Safer Consumer Product Regulations now prove that, says Ward Benshoof of Alston & Bird LLP.
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Circuit Split On Market Share-Based Discounts Remains
The U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to review ZF Meritor LLC v. Eaton Transmission Corporation means that the Third Circuit’s less permissive view of dominant firm pricing conduct remains intact for now, and suggests that Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware federal courts will likely be the preferred venues for challenges to such conduct, says Eric Berman of Williams Mullen.
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How McBurney V. Young Will Impact State FOIAs
In McBurney v. Young, the U.S. Supreme Court has permitted the still-uncommon practice of state legislatures to restrict use of their freedom of information laws to citizens of the states. But states should not race to adopt citizens-only provisions in their freedom of information laws, say John Borger and Leita Walker of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.
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E-Commerce Taxation Bill Might Be Unconstitutional
Recent decisions from the federal courts suggest that the constitutionality of the proposed Marketplace Fairness Act, which would permit states to require out-of-state businesses to collect and remit sales taxes on goods sold over the Internet, is open to serious debate, says Michael Abate of Dinsmore & Shohl LLP.
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Applying Absolute Priority Rule — Broad Vs. Narrow Views
Due to conflicting interpretations of Bankruptcy Code Section 1129, debtors in most jurisdictions currently lack a firm grasp on whether the court handling their cases will find that the absolute priority rule has been completely abrogated, or whether it still applies to an individual debtor's prepetition property. To further compound this uncertainly, some bankruptcy courts in the same district have ruled inconsistently on the issue, say Mikel Bistrow and Jennifer Pinder of Foley & Lardner LLP.
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It’s My Expert, And I’ll Call Her If I Want To
The recent decision in Washington v. Perez is a useful reminder that defense counsel must remain mindful during opening statement and cross-examination that it may later decide not to call certain experts. Fortunately, this decision clarifies that New Jersey appellate courts recognize that the defense is entitled to change strategy as the case progresses, says Adam Tolin of Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP.
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Don't Let Your Plaintiff Get Away In CEPA Cases
New Jersey's Conscientious Employee Protection Act is a powerful anti-retaliation statute, providing an array of significant remedies to an aggrieved party. However, as taken from Hitesman v. Bridgeway Inc., with great power comes great responsibility, including the important gatekeeping functions of trial courts in cases brought under the act, says Lawrence Del Rossi of Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP.