Christie to announce judicial nominations this afternoon

Governor Chris Christie has called a press conference for 2:30 this afternoon to announce his new judicial nominations.

The Star Ledger reported this morning that the governor would re-nominate Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, giving Rabner tenure, and nominate Superior Court Judge Lee Solomon to the Supreme Court.  In a deal struck with Senate President Sweeney, there a remaining vacancy on the Supreme Court would continue to be filled on a temporary basis by Rabner’s choice, Judge Mary Catherine Cuff.

Christie’s press conference can be viewed live here:

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Christie to nominate Chief Justice Rabner for tenure on NJ Supreme Court

Christie to nominate Chief Justice Rabner for tenure on NJ Supreme Court (via NJ.com)

By Matt Friedman and Salvador Rizzo/The Star-Ledger TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie today will re-nominate Stuart Rabner as chief justice of the state Supreme Court, The Star-Ledger has learned. The development is a breakthrough in negotiations between…

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Clash Over Changes in Civil Service Rules Isn’t Civil at All

Clash Over Changes in Civil Service Rules Isn’t Civil at All (via NJSpotlight)

When Gov. Chris Christie called Democrats’ bluff on a key labor issue last week – as the state Civil Service Commission followed through on its promise to relax promotion standards for most state jobs — the only surprise was that opponents of the…

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Analysis: $74 Billion In Future Pension Payments At Stake in Lawsuit

Analysis: $74 Billion In Future Pension Payments At Stake in Lawsuit (via NJSpotlight)

While Gov. Chris Christie considers pushing off June’s pension payment to close an $807 million budget gap, a state appeals court is weighing a lawsuit challenging the elimination of cost-of-living increases for retirees that would not only add $74…

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Christie alters course on Supreme Court nominee

Christie alters course on Supreme Court nominee (via NJ.com)

Gov. Chris Christie plans to nominate Robert Hanna as a lower court judge, apparently altering course on the nominee he had championed for the Supreme Court, NJ.com has confirmed. Christie has filed the pre-nomination documents for Hanna, whose nomination…

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NJ Supreme Court Overturns Affordable Housing Rules, Puts COAH on Tight Deadline

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N.J. Supreme Court to issue major affordable housing decision

N.J. Supreme Court to issue major affordable housing decision (via NJ.com)

Keith A. Muccilli/For The Star-Ledger TRENTON — The state Supreme Court will hand down a long-awaited decision today on how many affordable-housing units New Jersey’s towns must provide for their lowest-income residents. At issue, again, is the…

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Casagrande Introduces Legislation To Nullify Absurd Texting Decision

Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande announced yesterday that she will introduce legislation that will protect the sender of a text message from civil liability if the receiver of the text is involved in a car accident while reading the message.

Thank goodness, and let’s hope that legislation get fast tracked

In what can only be considered a gift to the overpopulated legal community, the Appellate Division of New Jersey’s Superior Court last week ruled that senders of text messages could be liable for accidents that occur while the receivers are reading them “when a texter knows or has special reason to know that the intended recipient  is driving and is likely to read the text message while driving, the texter has  a duty to users of the public roads to refrain from sending the driver a text at  that time.”

What is a “special reason to know?”  That is new legal distinction that will have to be defined in another expensive court decision, unless Casagrande’s common sense legislation is passed and signed into law before the next ambulance chaser gets his law school buddy on the bench to define it.

Imagine the cases, and legal fees, this new legal liability will create.  Imagine the increases in insurance premiums, auto, homeowner’s, and business liability, this will cause.

If a spouse texts “pick milk” to his or her significant other during rush hour, and the receiving spouse gets into a car accident, the couple’s homeowner’s insurance company will get dragged into the law suit filed by the ambulance chaser.

Imagine the deposition questions asked at $250+ per hour per attorney:

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Christie Nominates Camden County Assignment Judge To State Supreme Court

Justice Helen E. Hoens. photo via NJ Courts website

Governor Christie announced the nomination of Judge Faustino J. Fernandez-Vina to replace Justice Helen Hoens on the State Supreme Court during a press conference at the State House this afternoon.

Hoens, who was up for reappointment after seven years, will not be re-nominated, Christie said, because State Senator Ray Lesniak, a senior Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, recently said that Hoens would not be reconfirmed as political retribution for Christie not re-nominating Justice John Wallace in 2010.  Christie said that Hoens took the news as a professional and thanked him for not putting her through an arduous and fruitless re-confirmation hearing.  Hoen’s term expires in late October.

There are currently two vacancies, of seven positions, on the State Supreme Court. Christie nominated Monmouth County Judge David F. Bauman and Board of Public Utilities President Robert Hanna to fill those vacancies in December of last year.  The Democratically controlled State Senate has not acted on their nominations, despite the fact that both men have been previously confirmed by the Senate for their current positions.

If all three of Christie’s current nominees are confirmed, a majority of the Court, 4 Justices, will be Christie appointees. Justice Anne M. Patterson was nominated by Christie in May of 2010. She was confirmed by the Senate and sworn in 19 months later in September of 2011.

Judge Fernandez-Vina, a Cuban-American and a Republican, was first nominated to the Superior Court in Camden County by Governor Jim McGreevey in 2004.  He was re-nominated by Christie an reconfirmed by the Senate in 2011.  In 2012, Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, a Corzine appointee, named Fernandez-Vina the Assignment Judge of the Camden County Vicinage.

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Appelate Court OK’s Special Election

Our friend Matt Rooney at Save Jersey reports that New Jersey’s Superior Court’s Appellate Division ruled that the Special Election for U. S. Senate called by Governor Christie passes legal muster.

Rooney says that an appeal to the State Supreme Court is possible.

Click here to read the Court’s ruling.

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