Charles Toutant

December 26, 2005 | New Jersey Law Journal

Corporate America wouldn't think of launching a new flavor of toothpaste without doing market research, and the idea is slowly growing among law firms faced with ever-increasing competition.

By Charles Toutant

7 minute read

April 19, 2007 | Law.com

Ford Motor Co. may have been spared a monster punitive damages verdict in an SUV rollover case because its lawyer was allowed to tell jurors about the carmaker's dire financial straits and mass layoffs. A New Jersey jury on Wednesday awarded only $42,500 in punitives, despite having found Ford liable for $10.6 million in compensatory damages to a paralyzed driver. The suit claimed that the 2000 accident was caused by a defective throttle design in the 1997 Ford Explorer.

By Charles Toutant

3 minute read

April 30, 2007 | Law.com

Sports-venue operators may have to do more to protect patrons during warm-up sessions than in actual games, a New Jersey appeals court says. The panel ruled last week that a woman beaned by a puck before the start of a hockey game -- when dozens of pucks were in play as the teams practiced -- shouldn't have had her case summarily dismissed. Under the ruling, the duty of care may vary not only with the location of the spectator but also with the specific activity under way at the sports facility.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

November 10, 2010 | New Jersey Law Journal

A public employee may bring a whistleblower suit even if he fails to raise that claim in his administrative challenge to his termination, a state appeals court rules.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

April 07, 2010 | Law.com

The New Jersey Supreme Court has agreed to settle a vexing issue in child sexual assault cases: whether expert testimony that minors seldom lie about such abuse is too prejudicial to admit into evidence. In State v. W.B., the defendant argues that the trial court erred by permitting the state's expert on Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome to offer testimony that "amounted to an expert opinion that [the] initial allegations against defendant were nearly certainly true," although later withdrawn.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

November 25, 2009 | Law.com

Paul Bergrin, a New Jersey criminal defense lawyer accused of being at the center of a criminal enterprise, pleaded not guilty in federal court Monday to a raft of charges that include murder and drug trafficking. The superseding indictment almost tripled to 39 the original 14 counts lodged against the former federal prosecutor. On top of earlier charges that he engaged in prostitution and mortgage fraud, and arranged the murder of a witness, Bergrin stands charged with interstate travel in aid of bribery and trafficking.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

October 17, 2003 | The Legal Intelligencer

Megan's Law's community supervision for life is the target of a planned legal attack, thanks in part to an appeals ruling that raises a constitutional red flag.

By Charles Toutant

7 minute read

September 30, 2009 | New Jersey Law Journal

The Supreme Court has censured a Point Pleasant solo for splitting fees with a company that helped him find clients entitled to surplus funds from sheriff's foreclosure sales.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

July 02, 2001 | Law.com

The Appellate Division in New Jersey has pulled the plug on former anchorwoman Sara Lee Kessler's $7 million wrongful discharge verdict against WWOR-TV in New Jersey, finding trial court errors in admitting evidence and in charging the jury. In a per curiam decision, the panel ordered a new trial on Kessler's claims of handicap discrimination and retaliation.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

November 18, 2009 | New Jersey Law Journal

Legal Services of New Jersey has launched a project to assist the growing ranks of disabled veterans with claims for government benefits.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read