Tax Court: National Winter Activity Center v. Dir., Div. of Taxation, Docket No. 008480-2017; opinion by Bianco, J.T.C., decided September 25, 2020. For plaintiff – Cara A. Parmigiani (Law Office of Cara A. Parmigiani LLC, attorney); for defendant - Joseph A. Palumbo (Director, Division of Taxation, attorney); for movant – Joshua A. Zielinski (O’Toole Scrivo, LLC, attorneys).
The court held that the movant, Vernon, satisfied the requirements for intervention as of right under R. 4:33-1, and granted Vernon’s motion to intervene, finding that Vernon has a legitimate interest in the subject of the litigation due to its authorization to use the funds in its municipality to further the purposes of the Fair Housing Act (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-301 to 329.9). The court also found that Vernon’s interest in the litigation was not adequately represented by the named defendant, the Director, and that the Municipality’s presence is necessary in cases where it is the ultimate user of the funds. Further, the court decided that Vernon’s application is timely because Vernon did not have actual notice of the pending litigation. The court rejected the Plaintiff’s motion to transfer the fees held in escrow by Vernon to the State because Vernon is the ultimate user of the funds, given that Vernon has obtained authorization to assess and maintain Non-Residential Development Fee funds under N.J.S.A. 52:27D- 329.2(a),(b).