Gibbons Law Alert

Gibbons Law Alert

Author: Gibbons P.C.

The Coronavirus Pandemic and Your Business: How We Can Help – The Big Picture

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Posted in Crisis Communications

On March 18, 2020

The unprecedented scope of the response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has drastically affected every facet of life and continues to impact our clients in a growing number of ways. Gibbons attorneys have been working closely with clients over the past weeks to navigate emergent, unexpected challenges in a wide range of areas, from the novel human resources issues that arise when an entire workforce is required to work remotely – or when workplaces or specific jobs within a workplace are not equipped for work-from-home arrangements – to perhaps first-time interactions with local, county, and state officials and regulators. Over the coming days, Gibbons will continue reaching out regularly to clients to let you know the various ways we can assist you with advice, counsel, best practices, and creative solutions for this turbulent situation, to help you ensure operational continuity and emerge from the current crisis. Please do not hesitate to contact Kevin G. Walsh, Co-Chair of the Gibbons Government & Regulatory Affairs Department, with any general questions regarding your legal obligations and options in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. More in the “Coronavirus and Your Business” Series: Insurance Coverage in the Age of COVID-19 Economic Loss Recovery/Minimization with State and Federal Programs Force Majeure Provisions in Contracts

Seven Gibbons Employment & Labor Law Department Attorneys Selected to 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers and Rising Stars

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Posted in Firm News / General Litigation

On March 16, 2020

Seven Gibbons Employment & Labor Law Department attorneys were featured in New Jersey Super Lawyers and New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars, with five Department attorneys on the 2020 Super Lawyers list and two on the 2020 Rising Stars list. These attorneys were listed in a wide range of categories, including Employment & Labor and Employment Litigation – Defense. Highlights of this year’s New Jersey Super Lawyers list include the top-tier rankings earned by two Department attorneys. Top 10 Attorneys in New Jersey Christine A. Amalfe, Chair, Employment & Labor Law Department Top 100 Attorneys in New Jersey Christine A. Amalfe, Chair, Employment & Labor Law Department Susan L. Nardone, Director, Employment & Labor Law Department Top 50 Female Attorneys in New Jersey Christine A. Amalfe, Chair, Employment & Labor Law Department Susan L. Nardone, Director, Employment & Labor Law Department The Gibbons attorneys listed in the 2020 issue of New Jersey Super Lawyers are Christine A. Amalfe, Kelly Ann Bird, Susan L. Nardone, Kristin D. Sostowski, and Richard S. Zackin. James J. La Rocca and Joseph E. Santanasto were selected to the 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars list. For the full release, please see here.

Eight Gibbons Real Property and Environmental Attorneys Selected to 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers and Rising Stars

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Posted in Development/Redevelopment / Environmental and Green Issues / Firm News / Real Estate

On March 16, 2020

Attorneys from the Gibbons Real Property and Environmental Departments were featured in New Jersey Super Lawyers and New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars, with five attorneys on the 2020 Super Lawyers list and three on the 2020 Rising Stars list. These attorneys were listed in a wide range of categories, including Environmental, Land Use/Zoning, and Real Estate. The Gibbons attorneys listed in the 2020 issue of New Jersey Super Lawyers are Russell B. Bershad, Howard D. Geneslaw, William S. Hatfield, John H. Klock, and Susanne Peticolas. Jordan M. Asch, Andrew J. Camelotto, and Cameron W. MacLeod were selected to the 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars section. For the full release, please see here.

27 Gibbons Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department Attorneys Selected to 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers and Rising Stars

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Posted in Antitrust / Class Action Defense / Construction Litigation / Firm News / General Litigation / Insurance

On March 16, 2020

Attorneys from the Gibbons Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department were featured in New Jersey Super Lawyers and New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars, with 18 Department attorneys on the 2020 Super Lawyers list and nine on the 2020 Rising Stars list. These attorneys were listed in a wide range of categories, including Antitrust, Business Litigation, Class Action, Communications, Construction Litigation, Criminal Defense, Criminal Defense: White Collar, Insurance Coverage, and Media/Advertising. Highlights of this year’s New Jersey Super Lawyers list include the top-tier rankings earned by two Department attorneys: Top 10 Attorneys in New Jersey Lawrence S. Lustberg, Co-Chair, Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department Top 100 Attorneys in New Jersey Michael R. Griffinger, Director, Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department Lawrence S. Lustberg, Co-Chair, Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department The Gibbons attorneys listed in the 2020 issue of New Jersey Super Lawyers are: Frederick W. Alworth Guy V. Amoresano Robert C. Brady Thomas J. Cafferty Patrick C. Dunican Jr. Michael R. Griffinger Jennifer A. Hradil Bruce A. Levy Lawrence S. Lustberg Robert J. MacPherson Michael R. McDonald Brian J. McMahon Mary Frances Palisano Damian V. Santomauro Peter J. Torcicollo Thomas R. Valen Christopher Walsh John T. Wolak Those listed in the 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars section are: Anne M. Collart Leigh A. DeCotiis Sylvia-Rebecca...

Two Gibbons Government & Regulatory Affairs Department Attorneys Selected to 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers and Rising Stars

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Posted in Federal Lobbying / Firm News

On March 16, 2020

Two members of the Gibbons Government & Regulatory Affairs Department have been selected to the 2020 New Jersey Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists. Kevin G. Walsh, Co-Chair of the Department, was selected to the Super Lawyers list, while Michael D. DeLoreto, an associate in the Department, was selected to the Rising Stars list. For the full release, please see here.

More Than Parking Tickets: Appellate Division Rules that New Jersey Municipal Courts Can Assess Civil Penalties for Spill Act Violations

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Posted in Environmental and Green Issues

On November 26, 2019

Municipal courts are typically called on to rule on such matters as parking violations and speeding tickets. Some statutes, however, give them jurisdiction over a surprising variety of actions. In its published opinion in State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection v. Alsol Corporation, the Appellate Division held that one powerful environmental law, the Spill Compensation and Control Act (Spill Act), grants municipal courts jurisdiction to assess civil penalties for violations of the statute, even where the department has not already gone through an administrative process to assess such penalties. DEP’s complaint against Alsol arose from an October 2016 oil spill at a property it owns in Milltown. According to factual assertions made by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), the spill was the result of a contractor’s faulty demolition of three electrical transformers. Oil from the transformers, later determined to contain polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), spilled onto the surface and into a storm drain. The oil allegedly reached Farrington Lake and may have reached Mill Pond and Lawrence Brook, which a Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Fish and Wildlife Officer closed to fishing. The complaint, filed in Milltown Municipal Court, did not allege a violation of the Spill Act’s fundamental prohibition on the discharge of hazardous substances. Instead, it alleged that Alsol...

Expect the Unexpected: New Jersey Appellate Division Rules That Language of Pre-SRRA Contract Requires Remediation Under New Rules

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Posted in Environmental and Green Issues

On October 24, 2019

It is universally recognized that the 2009 Site Remediation Reform Act (SRRA) completely overhauled the process of site remediation in New Jersey. Less obvious, perhaps, was how the new statute could affect contractual cleanup obligations in agreements that predate SRRA’s enactment. In 89 Water Street Associates LLC v. Reilly, the Appellate Division held that the language of a purchase-and-sale agreement from 2004 required the seller to meet all of the requirements of the later-enacted statute, even if the cleanup takes much longer, and costs much more, than originally envisioned. The saga begins in 2004, when the plaintiff entered into a contract to purchase an industrial property in Bridgeton from the defendant’s predecessors in interest. The owner had already been through one remediation process, having obtained a “no further action” letter (NFA) from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) under the Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA) (then known as the Environmental Cleanup Responsibility Act). The owner leased the site to a company (NRI) that he controlled in 1984. Fast forward twenty years, when the parties entered into a contract to transfer the property for $475,000. The agreement set a closing date, which could be extended by six months, but did not permit termination of the contract if the closing did not occur on time....

New Jersey Enacts Changes to Landmark 2009 Site Remediation Reform Act

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Posted in Environmental and Green Issues

On September 3, 2019

In 2009, in the face of a significant backlog of sites that were stuck in the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) pipeline, the New Jersey Legislature dramatically changed the process of site remediation in the Garden State with the enactment of the Site Remediation Reform Act (SRRA). The SRRA partially outsourced DEP’s review role by authorizing “private” oversight of cleanups by Licensed Site Remediation Professionals (LSRPs). On August 23, 2019, Governor Murphy signed new legislation that made further adjustments to the changes wrought by the SRRA. The legislation (L. 2019, c. 263), which sailed through both legislative chambers without a single opposing vote, makes a number of changes to the LSRP program, as well as other changes affecting parties responsible for conducting remediation projects. Amendments Affecting LSRPs Removal of unoccupied structures from list of areas that must be addressed as an “immediate environmental concern.” Expansion of LSRP duties to report immediate environmental concerns and previously unreported discharges. A slight relaxation of licensing requirements for individuals who may have temporarily left the work force for personal reasons. Clarification of prior acts and punishments that will disqualify a person from obtaining an LSRP license. Tightening of LSRPs’ oversight responsibilities to ensure that non-LSRPs do not effectively perform work reserved for LSRPs. Requiring an affidavit of merit from...

Supreme Court Holds That 14-Day Appeal Deadline Established by Rule 23(f) Cannot Be Tolled

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Posted in Class Action Defense

On April 15, 2019

On February 26, 2019, the Supreme Court unanimously held in Nutraceutical Corporation v. Lambert, that the 14-day deadline imposed by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f), seeking permission to appeal an order granting or denying class certification, cannot be tolled. After initially certifying a class, the District Court, on February 20, 2015, decertified the class after finding that common issues did not predominate among the class members. Pursuant to Rule 23(f)’s 14-day deadline, the plaintiff, Lambert, had until March 5, 2015 to seek permission to appeal. But, on March 2, 2015, Lambert orally informed the District Court that he would seek reconsideration and did not file his motion for reconsideration until March 12, 2015. Lambert’s motion for reconsideration was denied on June 24, 2015. Fourteen days after that, almost four months past his 14-day deadline, Lambert petitioned the Ninth Circuit seeking permission to appeal the District Court’s order decertifying the class. The Court of Appeals granted Lambert’s petition, finding that the 14-day deadline under Rule 23(f) should be tolled given the circumstances. Specifically, the Court of Appeals found that because Lambert had informed the court within 14 days that he would be seeking reconsideration, he acted diligently. The Supreme Court disagreed, however, and found that the 14-day deadline imposed by Rule 23(f) could not be...

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