NJ Cops | Seite 14

14

NEW JERSEY COPS ■ MARCH 2014

Administrative agencies don’t
always get the last word
Courts have over ruled decisions made by PERC and Civil Service
In appeals of final decisions of administrative
agencies such as PERC and the Civil Service
Commission, courts will generally defer to the
agency expertise. As a general rule, the courts
place a heavy burden on the party seeking to
contest the agency’s decision. However, the principle of judicial deference to an agency decision
is not absolute. Two decisions issued by the
Appellate Division in reviewing decisions by both
PERC and the Civil Service Commission illustrate
this point.

NJ State PBA

Legal Corner

Robert A.
Fagella, Esq.

In the Matter of Donna Jackson, the Appellate
Division overruled the Civil Service Commission in a case
involving a disciplinary penalty issued to a Hudson County Corrections Officer. In this case, the allegation was that the corrections officer failed to notify the employer that her driver’s license
had been suspended in violation of a rule requiring all custody
staff to possess a current and valid driver’s license. The county
sought to discharge her. The officer’s response was simple: She

Paul L.
Kleinbaum,
Esq.

disputed the charge because she did not know that
her license was suspended. In fact, when she was
advised of the suspension by the department’s
Internal Affairs officer, she immediately remedied
the situation by paying a parking ticket that she did
not know had been issued to her. The employer
acknowledged that the “intent” of the employee
was critical to the charge of failing to report, and
never contended that driving without a license –
whether or not the employee knew the license had
been suspended – was a separate offense.

The Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) dismissed
the charges because the officer was not aware that her license
had been suspended, and thus could not have intentionally
failed to notify the employer. However, despite this lack of
knowledge, the Civil Service Commission reversed the ALJ.
It concluded that the license suspension by itself was sufficient to uphold the charges and imposed a 10-day suspension.

Zazzali, Fagella, Nowak,
Kleinbaum & Friedman
Representing the New Jersey State PBA,
local PBAs, and law enforcement officers
for more than 40 years:
Contract negotiations and interest arbitration;
Contract grievances and grievance arbitration;
All disciplinary appeals and unfair practice charges;
Discrimination and whistleblower cases;
Disability pension appeals;
All aspects of State and Federal litigation;
State PBA Legal Protection Plan;
Practice before PERC, Civil Service Commission,
PFRS and other State agencies.

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