Answers were provided by Joseph L. Buckley, Chair, Litigation Department, Sills Cummis & Gross.

What are some of the department's most satisfying successes of 2023, and why?

The Sills Cummis Litigation Department's dedication to delivering high-quality and effective legal services led to numerous successful outcomes throughout 2023 and beyond. The range of litigation work throughout the Department is varied and includes several recent noteworthy trials and appeals in which our clients prevailed. Some highlights include: in a first of its kind decision under the religious exception to New Jersey's Law Against Discrimination, the New Jersey Supreme Court upheld the right of a Catholic school to discharge a teacher who acknowledged violating certain tenets of the Catholic Church; Johnson & Johnson's successful New Jersey Appellate Division decision reversing a $223 million jury verdict, one of the largest verdicts against J&J to be overturned in talc litigation in New Jersey; the New Jersey Appellate Division's decision to uphold the dismissal of various Covid-19 coverage claims asserted by a large commercial retailer against nine insurance carriers, seven of whom were represented by Sills Cummis; the representation of a manufacturer and distributor of consumer products in a multi-million dollar jury verdict against a multinational retail chain; a jury trial where we represented a real estate developer claiming tortious interference with prospective economic advantage against a town in New Jersey, which offered a multi-million dollar settlement to our client after nine days of trial; obtaining a no cause result for our client in a six-day arbitration presided over by a retired New Jersey Superior Court Judge, where $30 million was being sought; and, prevailing in a JAMS arbitration in which the claimant medical practice asserted a seven-figure claim against our client, a prominent bank.