Charles Toutant

December 02, 2002 | Law.com

The Federal Debt Collections Practices Act permits award of attorney fees even without a showing that a defendant is liable for actual or additional damages, a federal judge ruled Nov. 14. U.S. District Judge John Bissell in Newark, N.J., assessed counsel fees against a debt collector that had sent out a dunning notice on which mandatory debtor-rights language was printed in a typeface so small that it was "virtually unreadable."

By Charles Toutant

3 minute read

June 21, 2007 | New Jersey Law Journal

The confidentiality that cloaks New Jersey judicial ethics investigations must yield to a state subpoena for testimony in the trial of an indicted judge, the state Supreme Court rules.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

August 25, 2003 | New Jersey Law Journal

A lawyer's attempt to save a time-barred malpractice suit by wrapping it up as a federal RICO and civil rights case has drawn an unorthodox sanction: Rather than dock the lawyer for fees, the judge ordered him to take courses in federal practice and procedure, professionalism and legal ethics.

By Charles Toutant

3 minute read

May 17, 2007 | Law.com

A 2003 federal law designed to combat identity theft has triggered a series of putative class action suits against nationally known retailers over the amount of information they put on credit card and debit card receipts. And even more lawsuits are on the way. A defense attorney says large retail chains could face billions of dollars in claims if a wide-scale error resulted in thousands of electronicaly produced receipts that do not comply with the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

October 06, 2011 | New Jersey Law Journal

A civil rights law banning retaliation against those reporting illegal conditions at psychiatric hospitals creates no private cause of action by the whistleblower, a U.S. court rules in a Third Circuit case of first impression.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

March 15, 2011 | New Jersey Law Journal

The Supreme Court has suspended a Toms River lawyer for a year for lending his name to a collection agency's pursuit of debtors, a role that disciplinary authorities said clouded the attorney-client relationship.

By Charles Toutant

5 minute read

February 15, 2011 | New Jersey Law Journal

Layoff notices were sent Monday to nearly a third of the employees in the Camden County Prosecutor's Office, including 18 of the 62 assistant prosecutors, but the prosecutor is hoping for an 11th-hour reprieve.

By Charles Toutant

5 minute read

May 12, 2010 | New Jersey Law Journal

A federal appeals court has affirmed the rejection of a suit filed by a state trooper who claimed he suffered harassment and retaliation for complaining about racial profiling and who later killed himself.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read

March 20, 2006 | Law.com

Native American law, a well-established practice area west of the Mississippi, is gaining ground at eastern firms, as displaced tribes seek to reclaim ancestral lands and make them profitable. After successful settlements led to two casinos in Connecticut, other tribes started bringing land-claim suits -- and law firms are lining up to help. While tribes' finances are short and the odds of winning long, there are still legal fees to be had, since casino developers are willing to underwrite legal costs.

By Charles Toutant

8 minute read

June 27, 2007 | New Jersey Law Journal

In terms of business friendliness, New Jersey's legal system is neither a corporate haven like Delaware's nor a hostile territory like West Virginia. In fact, it falls smack in the middle, says a survey of in-house counsel.

By Charles Toutant

4 minute read