C&W Journal

January 04, 2013

New Jersey Liability Legal Update

In a recently unpublished decision, [1] the New Jersey Appellate Division in Morales v. Schneider has illustrated, once again, how difficult it is for a plaintiff to overcome the exclusive remedy provision, N.J.S.A. 34:15-8, pursuant to the Workers’ Compensation Act, N.J.S.A. 34:15-1 to -142. As will be detailed in this article, this provision...

January 04, 2013

New Jersey Premises Liability Legal Update

In Kandrac v. Marrazzo’s Mkt. , the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, in a recently published decision, held that a commercial tenant in a multi-tenant shopping center does not owe a...

January 04, 2013

Asset Protection Beyond the Umbrella (Good, Better, Best - At Least...

Recently, I was engaged in the topic of Asset Protection. A CPA standing nearby scoffed at the topic and said, “Just buy an umbrella.” It occurred to me that even a well-respected professional did...

November 05, 2012

I Say “Tomato”—You Say “Liable?” You now may be considered a ...

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania recently changed the definition of who can be considered a “statutory” employer in Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation cases in its recent Decision in Six L’s...

November 05, 2012

Bridge Collapse Provides Defense to Rescue Doctrine Suit

Recently, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court had occasion to analyze the interplay between the rescue doctrine and the doctrine of superseding cause. The rescue doctrine provides it is not...

November 05, 2012

Defendants No Longer Entitled to Credit for UIM Payments

In an en banc decision issued on September 28, 2012, the Superior Court reversed previous case law and held that a defendant is no longer entitled to a credit against a verdict for any UIM...

November 05, 2012

Court Finds Duty to Defend Intoxicated Employees

In Harleysville Ins. Co. v. Rode’s Fireside Restaurant & Tavern , the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, in an unpublished decision 1 , held that a general liability insurer had a...

September 29, 2012

CMS Determines TENS Use Not Payable for Chronic Low Back Pain and...

In 2010 a report by the Therapeutic and Technology Assessment Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology concluded that use of a TENS unit was ineffective in the treatment of chronic low...

September 29, 2012

Specific Loss Analysis is Less than Specific

Section 306(c) of the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act (Act), 77 P.S.§513, directs that compensation shall be payable for disability as a result of the permanent loss of various body parts....

September 29, 2012

Knowledge Equals . . . Liability

In Rabovsky v. Foster Wheeler, LLC , a case recently decided by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the plaintiff, Rabovsky, alleged that while working as an...

September 29, 2012

Strategic Joinder to Defeat Venue Transfer

Venue can often mean the difference between a win and a loss, or a six-figure case and a seven-figure case. When the case can be moved to a better venue, in most instances it should. Knowing that,...

September 29, 2012

How a Contractor Can Better Manage Its Construction Contracts

Whether a contractor is acting as a prime contractor (having a contract with the project owner) or a subcontractor, contractors are often presented with a contract to sign with little or no...

September 29, 2012

Agency—A Question of Fact for the Jury

In Mangual v. Berezinsky, the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, held that whether a limousine driver was acting as an agent for the party that hired him was an issue of fact for the...

September 29, 2012

What is Collaborative Law?

It’s not the law where people collaborate. That would be too easy. Rather, collaborative law is a process used in lieu of traditional family law litigation, wherein the parties agree to each hire...

July 29, 2012

Court Bars Expert Testimony Based On Certificate of Merit Election

In the matter of Mertzig et al. vs. Robert E. Booth Jr., et al., United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (April 25, 2012, Savage, J), the court addressed whether a...

July 29, 2012

Considerations in Defending a Professional Liability Action

In 2008, the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure concerning Professional Liability Actions were amended raising new considerations in the defense of these actions. Specifically, Rules 1042.6 and...

July 29, 2012

Potential Liability for Texting to Driver

The issue of liability related to cellular telephone usage while driving has been the focus of several recent decisions in multiple forums. We previously highlighted the decision by a Pennsylvania...

July 29, 2012

Sometimes Timing is Everything

In a matter of first impression, the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, held that the Wrongful Death Act, N.J.S.A. 2A:31-1 to -6 was broad enough to include as damages the amount of an...

July 29, 2012

Misleading Conduct Violates Pennsylvania’s Consumer Protection Law

In Bennett v. A.T. Masterpiece Homes at Broadsprings, LLC , the Pennsylvania Superior Court, in a published decision, held that “misleading conduct” was sufficient to impose liability under the...

May 08, 2012

Dismissal Obtained - Summary Judgment in Underinsured Motorist...

Attorneys Matthew K. Mitchell and Marc R. Jones of Cipriani & Werner’s (C&W) Marlton, New Jersey, office obtained summary judgment and a dismissal of all claims with prejudice for their...

May 08, 2012

Attention to Detail Results in Summary Judgment for Client

Attorney Stephen H. Franko, IV, of the Scranton office of Cipriani & Werner, P.C., recently removed a client, a municipality, from liability for a premise claim by successfully arguing a...

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