Appeal from Summary Judgement in a CEPA case

Ask your lawyer.

Nothing a stranger has to say about your case will be useful.

Here, I'll prove it to you.

Yes, if you had presented signed affidavits, you would have won hands down.

There, did that change anything?

 

No.

Pieces of paper cannot be questioned.

Every litigant has a right to question witnesses that testify adversely.

And you cannot win an appeal based on what you did procedurally wrong. You appeal based on what the judge did wrong. In this case the judge did nothing wrong by ignoring evidence for which you had no witnesses to testify about the documents they provided. Common amateur mistake by people who go to court without a lawyer.

 

The authors of the documents would have had to have been in the courtroom to provide foundation for the documents, testify to the contents, and be cross-examined by the other party to the litigation.

Were those witnesses in the courtroom during the trial?

 

You quoted me but didn't comment. Try again.

 

In a response to a motion for summary judgment, yes, affidavits may have been helpful (though not in a trial).

See Rule 4:46-5:

New Jersey Summary Judgment Rules

If you have to ask about affidavits at this late date, my guess is that you made procedural errors in responding to the motion for summary judgment.

Without actually reading the judge's decision all I can say is that the judge apparently found that the defendant's motion had merit and that there was no disputing the facts presented by the defendant.

Would you care to post the decision here? I'd be curious to look it over.

By the way, you have a small window to file an appeal. Maybe 20 to 30 days.

 

Yes, you can upload the file either as a pdf or individual pages as jpg. See the green button "Upload a file" when you reply. Make sure you redact anything that identifies you, the other party, the judge, the court or the case number.

Do the decision first. It'll provide clues as to whether the decision was valid or has issues. Also indicate what court level. Small Claims (up to $3K), Special Civil Part (up to $15K), higher?

 

It's very clear WHY summary judgment was granted.

 

Please try again.

 

Got it this time. I read it and read your typewritten comments.

You say things like "I thought their illegality was obvious" and "Even if everything in the Military and regular police reports is hearsay, don't those reports at the very least prove I whistleblew?" and "How is justice served when errors in procedure outweigh what is obviously right?"

Well, that's not how litigation works. There has to be procedures and technicalities. Otherwise there would be chaos.

You made serious procedural errors. Nothing is "obvious" in court. Hearsay doesn't prove anything because hearsay is generally inadmissible, meaning it doesn't exist.

You could have a trainload of evidence but if you don't present it in accordance with the rules of procedure, you lose. That's how litigation works. And that's why the judge granted summary judgment to the Defendant.

I don't see any error in the judge's decision. Consequently, I see no grounds for appeal. However, I suggest you have an attorney review all your evidence to see if you have any options.

Even if there was a glimmer of hope on appeal, doing it yourself guarantees failure.