Notable Cases & Published Case Law
Kummarapurugu v. Thota
Kummarapurugu v. Thota (App.Div. 2015) Sat Below: Hon. Catherine Fitzpatrick P.J.F.P. (Mercer County) In this wrongly decided appeal, the Appellate Division declined to intervene when the trial court inadvertently copied the wrong information from the record into the software used to calculate Mr. Kummarapurugu's child support obligation after Mr. Kummarapurugu sought review of the amount...
Miller v. Miller
Miller v. Miller, (App. Div. 2007) Sat Below: Hon. Roger Daley, J.S.C. (Middlesex County) The appellate court notes that, while the parties’ Property Settlement Agreement is not clear and unambiguous on its face with respect to the defendant-father’s obligation to pay his son’s college costs, it nevertheless disagrees with the trial judge’s conclusion that, because...
Khatkhat v. Hussein
Khatkhat v. Hussein, (App.Div. August 18, 2006) Sat Below: Hon. Salvatore Bovino, J.S.C. (Hudson County) In this emergent appeal, the trial court's Order incarcerating an indigent child support obligor was reversed; there was no evidence that defendant had the ability to pay the release amount ordered by the Court. "A litigant may not be incarcerated...
Tomlin v. Tomlin
Tomlin v. Tomlin (App Div 2005) Sat Below: Hon. Allison Accurso, J.S.C. (Mercer County) As has happened occasionally in the past, the trial Court, due to calendar congestion or some other reason, was delaying issuing an order. In this case, it was on an unopposed motion to freeze proceeds from an inheritance and sale of...
Harris v. Harris
Harris v. Harris (App Div 2005) Sat Below: Hon. Audrey Payton Blackburn, J.S.C. (Mercer County) The trial Court erred by dismissing plaintiff's domestic violence complaint and Temporary Restraining Order as a result of an error committed by the Municipal Court in the filing of the complaint. On an emergent application, the Appellate Division reversed and reinstated...
Bayes v. Wallace
Bayes v. Wallace A-5176-03T5 (App Div 2005) Sat Below: Hon. Thomas P. Kelly, J.S.C. (Mercer County) The trial Court erred by entering a restraining order after (1) denying defendant's request for an adjournment to retain counsel when plaintiff raised allegations at trial that went beyond those contained in her complaint (2) by relying on allegations...
State v. Harris
State v. Harris, A-6485-01T3 (App.Div. 2004) Sat Below: Hon. Laura M. LeWinn, J.S.C. (Mercer County) The trial Court erred in convicting defendant of violating the parties' mutual Domestic Violence restraining orders where there was no evidence that defendant's outburst at his former wife rose to the level of quasi-criminal harassment. Appellate Decision Appellant's brief
Owens v. Owens
Owens v. Owens, A-6005-00T2 (App.Div. 2003) Sat Below: Hon. Roger W. Daley, J.S.C. (Middlesex County) (Appearing for respondent) The trial court did not abuse its discretion in awarding $425.00 per week in permanent alimony and $127.00 per week in child support in light of the long-term (17 year) marriage, plaintiff's serious disabilities, and defendant's earnings...
Goldberg v. Goldberg
Goldberg v. Goldberg, A-003205-00T3 (App.Div. 2002) Sat Below: Hon. Audrey P. Blackburn, J.S.C. (Mercer County) The trial court erred in failing to compel custodial parent to repay child support received after the emancipation of the "child." This is a two page reversal; I have found it helpful to include a copy of this decision with...
Sharp v. Sharp
Sharp v. Sharp, 336 N.J.Super. 492 (App. Div. 2001) Sat below: Hon. Gerald Council, J.S.C. (Mercer County) In the first published appellate decision in New Jersey to address the intricacies of interstate child support jurisdiction under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA), the appellate division reversed a trial court finding of in personam jurisdiction...
Cruz v. Cruz
Cruz v. Cruz, (App.Div. March 19, 2001) Sat Below: Hon. Rosalie B. Cooper, J.S.C. (Ocean County) In this emergent appeal, the trial court's Order incarcerating an indigent child support obligor was reversed; there was no evidence that defendant had the ability to pay the release amount ordered by the Court. "A litigant may not be...
W.M. v. T.M.
W.M. v. T.M., A-4789-99T1 (App.Div. 2000) Sat below: Hon. Alan J. Pogarsky, J.S.C. (Mercer County) The trial court erred by resolving the material fact question of whether appellant had abused his daughter without conducting a plenary hearing. In light of the allegations made and the inherent difficulty of disproving same, appellant should have been granted...
Andreana Kavadas, et al v. Raymond Martinez, et al
MER-L-1004-15 Kavadas v. Martinez challenges the automatic suspension of driver's licenses for nonpayment of child support without a reasonably recent hearing to determine if a default was willful. It does not challenge the ability of a court to suspend a license where there has been a recent showing that it would serve a legitimate, coercive...
Weinstein v. Weinstein
Weinstein v. Weinstein (App.Div. March 27, 2000) Sat Below: Hon. Louis Locascio, J.S.C. (Monmouth County) In this emergent appeal, the trial court's Order incarcerating an indigent child support obligor was reversed; there was no evidence that defendant had the ability to pay the release amount ordered by the Court. The appellant was to be released...
Anne Pasqua, et al v. Hon. Gerald J. Council, et al
186 N.J. 127 (2006) (March 2006)A-6875-02T3 (Superior Court, Appellate Division) (September 2005) MER-L-406-03 (Superior Court, Law Division, 2003) (April 2003) 316 f.3d 412 (3d Cir. 2003) (United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 2003) (January 2003) Case No. 00CV-2418 (District Court, 2000) (October 2000) Pasqua v. Council successfully challenged New Jersey's failure to...
Fowler v. Ricks
MCBSS o/b/o Ricks v. Revel Fowler FD-11-1012-07 Revel Fowler v. Cassandra Ricks FD-11-1106-07 When a mother receiving TANF (welfare) gives birth to another child, the welfare benefits received do not increase. This is referred to as the "welfare cap." However, she is required to assign her right to receive child support for the after-born child...
Weinstein v. Weinstein
Weinstein v. Weinstein (App.Div. April 7, 2000) Sat Below: Hon. Louis Locascio, J.S.C. (Monmouth County) After the initial remand, a second trial court order incarcerating defendant was reversed and appellant ordered released immediately. Although the findings of the trial court as to appellant's ability to earn were affirmed, the remedy chosen (incarceration until payment of...
Bachman v. Cohen
Bachman v. Cohen (App.Div. April 12, 2000) Sat Below: Hon. Thomas W. Cavanaugh, Jr., J.S.C. (Monmouth County) In this emergent appeal, the trial court's Order incarcerating an indigent child support obligor was reversed; there was no evidence that defendant had the ability to pay the release amount ordered by the Court. A finding that an...
MCBSS o/b/o Brookins & Williams v. Tolbert
MCBSS o/b/o Brookins & Williams v. Tolbert, (App.Div. June 7, 2000) Sat below: Hon. Gerald Council, J.S.C. (Mercer County) In this emergent appeal, the trial court's Order incarcerating an indigent child support obligor was reversed; there was no evidence that defendant had the ability to pay the release amount ordered by the Court. The incarceration...
Margrabia v. Margrabia
Margrabia v. Margrabia, A-1179-97T1 (App.Div.), Cert denied 161 N.J. 250(1999) Sat Below: Hon. John Tomasello, J.S.C. (Gloucester County) The trial court erred in its determination that it could award "equitable credits" after finding that the parties' prenuptial agreement was valid and enforceable and by increasing a compensatory damages award based on considerations of the defendant's assets....
Gretel v. Essex
Gretel v. Essex, A-007-97T1 (App.Div. 1998) Sat below: Hon. Charles Delehey, J.S.C. (Mercer County) In this wrongly decided unsuccessful appeal, the appellate division extended the parameters of the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act's "former household member" jurisdictional prerequisite to include a brief co-tenancy with no romantic nor familial relationship between the litigants and affirmed the...
JAH v. JM
JAH v. JM A-3676-93T2 (App.Div. 1996) Sat Below: Hon. Roger Mahon, J.S.C. (Hunterdon County) David Perry Davis, while in final year of law school, working with several attorneys and the litigant pro se. The trial court abused its discretion in denying defendant-appellant's motion to vacate a default judgment, entered while she was suffering from severe...
Leonard, et al v. Blackburn, et al,
Leonard, et al v. Blackburn, et al, MER-L-3761-01 This civil rights suit addressed the arrest and jailing of defaulted child support obligors for weeks - sometimes even months - at a time without review of their incarcerations, and the ongoing inadequacy of the evidence adduced at such hearings that the jailed obligor has the current...
W.M., K.N., et al v. Hon. Philip Carchman, et al
W.M., K.N., et al v. Hon. Philip Carchman, et al (Law Div. 7/05) Separation of Church and State / First Amendment: Threatened suit over the violation First Amendment by Family Court orders compelling attendance Alcoholic Anonymous / Narcotics Anonymous meetings. The State conceded the point and changed the system prior to suit being filed. Correspondence...
Superior Court of New Jersey : Appellate Division
This page is being updated to include more recent Appellate Division decisions. A listing of them since those listed below can
be found here