TAC Associates v. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, A-57-09; Supreme Court; opinion by Long, J.; dissent by Rivera-Soto, J.; decided July 15, 2010. On certification to the Appellate Division, 408 N.J. Super. 117 (App. Div. 2009). [Sat below: Judges Winkelstein, Fuentes and Gilroy in the Appellate Division.] DDS No. 17-1-xxxx [25 pp.]
TAC Associates owned an industrial site in Raritan Township from the mid-1970s until January 2004. In November 2003, TAC submitted a notice to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) advising that it was ceasing operations at the facility and that the property was subject to sale. Because TAC was required by law to investigate potential contamination at the site, it engaged an environmental consultant, who discovered hydrocarbons. TAC and the property buyer established remediation trust accounts in anticipation of remediation costs. According to TAC, the funds have been largely depleted.
