In the penultimate voting session last week, the Legislature sent a number of bills of interest to the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) to Gov. Phil Murphy’s desk for consideration:
S-3416 (Sweeney)/A-5367 (Vainieri Huttle) – Marriage equality
The NJSBA supports the marriage equality bill, which codifies same-sex marriage in the statutes. The proposed legislation is key to codifying what has only been allowed as a result of the ruling in Garden State Equality v. Dow, 434 N.J. Super. 163 (Law Div. 2013). In Dow, state Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson ruled that the prohibition of same-sex marriages violates the equal protection guarantee of the New Jersey Constitution, issuing a summary judgment motion permitting these marriages. The bill would also amend the marriage statute to be gender neutral.
S-2817 (Gopal)/A-4624 (Downey) – Proof of service for veterans’ preference in civil service
The NJSBA supports the measure, which would allow active-duty service members to provide a document other than a DD-214 when claiming a veterans’ preference for civil service. The bill ultimately provides active-duty service members the opportunity to begin the process of securing a veterans’ preference on a civil service application before they have received a DD-214, making for a smoother transition from active duty to civil service.
S-914 (Rice)/A-2350 (Verelli) – Motor Vehicle Community Service Program
The bill would allow certain applicants to perform community service in lieu of paying motor vehicle surcharges. The NJSBA supports the bill since it would provide an alternative to qualified applicants with limited financial means to perform community service rather than paying motor vehicle surcharges. It ultimately provides fairness to those who have limited financial means to pay these surcharges.
S-1604 (Codey)/A-2808 (Schaer) – Certification of diligent inquiry in residential mortgage foreclosure actions
The NJSBA supports the bill, as rewritten, because it would codify New Jersey Court Rule 4:64-1. This rule sets forth the process by which attorneys must certify that they have met the mandates of the court rule involving mortgage foreclosure actions when filing a complaint.
S-926 (Pennacchio)/A-862 (Chiaravalloti) – Property tax credits following assessment appeals
The NJSBA met with the bill’s sponsor, Assemblyman Nicholas Chiaravalloti, to discuss its concerns with the legislation, related to its application to residential properties. The bill would permit a municipality to repay a refund following a successful assessment appeal over three years, in the form of a property tax credit. The NJSBA sought amendments prior to the bill’s passage, and continues that effort with the Governor’s Office. The sponsor has been amenable to these changes and has worked with the Association to achieve the goals of the bill.
This is a status report provided by the New Jersey State Bar Association on recently passed and pending legislation, regulations, gubernatorial nominations and/or appointments of interest to lawyers, as well as the involvement of the NJSBA as amicus in appellate court matters. To learn more, visit njsba.com.