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APPEALS ADDED IN THE NEW JERSEY SUPREME COURT LISTED NEWEST TO OLDEST

The following statements of issues on appeal are prepared by the Office of the Clerk for the convenience of the reader. They have been neither reviewed nor approved by the Supreme Court. Please note that, in the interest of brevity, some issues may not have been summarized.

Beginning on July 16, 2010, each appeal summary posted on this website includes its "posted" date, which is necessary for calculating certain due dates for filing briefs and motions under revised Rule 1:13-9, "Amicus Curiae."

In addition, website addresses cited in the Court's opinions may change or disappear over time. An attempt has been made to capture the material cited in an opinion and to provide links to those sources, when available.

A-13/14-15 Cypress Point Condominium Association, Inc. v. Adria Towers, LLC (076348)

In this dispute regarding insurance coverage under a general contractor's commercial general liability policy, do these damages constitute "property damage" and an "occurrence" where subcontractors' defective work caused consequential damages to the common areas of a condominium complex and to the unit owners' property?

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  • Certification granted : Oct. 29, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 30, 2015
  • Argued: April 25, 2016
  • Decided: Aug. 4, 2016

A-12-15 State v. James Legette (076124)

Was it permissible for this police officer to accompany the suspect into his apartment to obtain his identification, and thereafter to seize a firearm, under the circumstances presented?

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  • Certification granted : Oct. 29, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 30, 2015
  • Argued: Sept. 13, 2016
  • Decided: Jan. 12, 2017

A-11-15 State v. Al-Sharif Scriven (075682)

Did the officer have a justifiable basis for stopping this vehicle for suspected violation of the high beam statute, N.J.S.A. 39:3-60?

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  • Leave to appeal granted : Oct. 22, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 23, 2015
  • Argued: April 26, 2016
  • Decided: July 20, 2016

A-10-15 Lamar Williams v. American Auto Logistics (076004)

Under the circumstances presented, was appellant denied his right to a jury trial on his Special Civil complaint seeking compensatory damages?

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  • Certification granted : Oct. 22, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 23, 2015
  • Argued: April 25, 2016
  • Decided: July 28, 2016

A-9-15 State v. Tawian Bacome (075953)

Under the circumstances presented, was defendant's passenger lawfully ordered out of the vehicle that defendant was driving?

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  • Appeal as of right (Appellate Division dissent) and Certification granted : Oct. 9, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 9, 2015
  • Argued: Nov. 30, 2016
  • Decided: Jan. 31, 2017

A-8-15 State v. Michael Cawley (075915)

Was the DNA evidence properly admitted under the inevitable discovery doctrine; and was it permissible for the prosecutor to use, for impeachment purposes, defendant's prior statements that were secured in violation of his constitutional rights?

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  • Certification granted : Oct. 9, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 9, 2015
  • Argued: Sept. 12, 2016
  • Dismissed as improvidently granted : Oct. 5, 2016

A-7-15 State v. Patrick McFarlane (075938)

Was defendant's sentence, imposed following his trial and conviction for first-degree murder, excessive and the result of an improper assessment of sentencing factors?

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  • Certification granted : Oct. 9, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 9, 2015
  • Argued: Jan. 5, 2016
  • Decided: April 7, 2016

A-6-15 Rosenthal & Rosenthal, Inc. v. Vanessa Benun (076266)

In this foreclosure action involving two creditors, did the mortgage secured by respondent in 2007 have priority over appellant's two earlier, recorded mortgages, where appellant continued to make optional advances to the mortgagor after having actual notice of respondent's mortgage?

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  • Certification granted : Oct. 5, 2015
  • Posted: Oct. 5, 2015
  • Argued: April 26, 2016
  • Decided: July 21, 2016

A-5-15 State v. Xiomara Gonzales (075911)

Were the drugs seized from defendant's vehicle admissible under the plain view exception to the warrant requirement?

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  • Certification granted : Sept. 18, 2015
  • Posted: Sept. 18, 2015
  • Argued: Sept. 12, 2016
  • Decided: Nov. 15, 2016

A-4-15 State in the Interest of N.H (076316)

In this juvenile matter, where seventeen-year-old N.H. was charged with offenses which, if committed by an adult, would constitute purposeful and knowing murder and unlawful possession of a weapon, is N.H. entitled to full and complete discovery of the State's file in advance of the hearing on waiver to adult court, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:4A-26e?

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  • Leave to appeal granted : Sept. 14, 2015
  • Posted: Sept. 15, 2015
  • Argued: April 11, 2016
  • Decided: Aug. 10, 2016

A-3-15 State v. Dennis Welch (073976)

Read Order

Is this indigent defendant entitled to representation by the Office of Public Defender on his petition for certification to the Supreme Court of New Jersey?

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  • Certification granted : Sept. 14, 2015
  • Posted: Sept. 15, 2015
  • Argued: March 14, 2016
  • Decided by Order : April 14, 2016

A-2-15 State v. Charles Bryant, Jr. (075958)

Was the protective sweep of defendant's residence lawful under the circumstances presented?

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  • Certification granted : Sept. 14, 2015
  • Posted: Sept. 15, 2015
  • Argued: Sept. 12, 2016
  • Decided: Nov. 10, 2016

A-1-15 Brian Royster v. New Jersey State Police (075926)

Were defendants entitled to immunity on plaintiff's failure to accommodate claim under the American's with Disabilities Act; and did these defendants waive that immunity?

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  • Certification granted : Sept. 14, 2015
  • Posted: Sept. 15, 2015
  • Argued: Sept. 12, 2016
  • Decided: Jan. 17, 2017

A-73-14 Brenda Ann Schwartz v. Accuratus Corporation (076195)

Does the premises liability rule set forth in Olivo v. Owens-Illinois, Inc., 186 N.J. 394 (2006), extend beyond providing a duty of care to the spouse of a person exposed to toxic substances on the landowner's premises, and, if so, what are the limits on that liability rule and the associated scope of duty?

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  • Question of law certified by U.S. Court of Appeals for Third Circuit, accepted : July 30, 2015
  • Posted: July 31, 2015
  • Argued: April 25, 2016
  • Decided: July 6, 2016

A-71/72-14 Richard W. Berg v. Hon. Christopher J. Christie (074612)

Is the State of New Jersey entitled to sovereign immunity with respect to plaintiffs federal Contract Clause claim; and do these public-employee plaintiffs have a contractual right to the payment of cost of living increases?

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  • Certification granted : July 30, 2015
  • Posted: July 31, 2015
  • Argued: March 14, 2016
  • Decided: June 9, 2016

A-70-14 State v. Khalid Mohammed (075901)

Where defense counsel notified the trial court that a juror appeared to be sleeping during the court's final charge, was the court's response to counsel's notification sufficient under the circumstances?

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  • Certification granted : July 20, 2015
  • Posted: July 20, 2015
  • Argued: April 11, 2016
  • Decided: July 25, 2016

A-69-14 Rachel A. Parsons v. Mullica Township Board of Education (075859)

Were defendants, the Board of Education and a registered nurse/certified school nurse, entitled to immunity in this action alleging that they failed to timely notify the minor plaintiff's parents of the results of a vision screening exam?

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  • Leave to appeal granted : July 20, 2015
  • Posted: July 20, 2015
  • Argued: April 12, 2016
  • Decided: Aug. 17, 2016

A-68-14 State v. Michael Cushing (073925)

Under the circumstances presented, did defendant's family member(s) have actual or apparent authority to consent to a warrantless search of defendant's bedroom closet?

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  • Certification granted : July 20, 2015
  • Posted: July 20, 2015
  • Argued: Feb. 29, 2016
  • Decided: Aug. 3, 2016

A-67-14 Berman, Sauter, Record & Jardim, P.C. v. Art Robinson (075583)

In this attorney malpractice action, was it proper for the Appellate Division to raise the issue of the propriety of the trial judge's participation, and to vacate and remand the trial court's order on that basis?

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  • Certification granted : July 20, 2015
  • Posted: July 20, 2015
  • Argued: March 1, 2016
  • Decided: March 8, 2016

A-66-14 State v. William Haas (075834)

In this matter involving defendant's third conviction for driving while intoxicated, was defendant entitled to jail credits for the 149-days that he was restricted to his home (with limited exceptions) as a condition of a stay of his custodial sentence?

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  • Certification granted : July 20, 2015
  • Posted: July 20, 2015
  • Argued: April 12, 2016
  • Dismissed as improvidently granted : April 13, 2016