Kevin Kutyla's Blog
The Cochran House,
83 Spring Street, Newton, NJ
98 Route 46, Budd Lake, NJ
12 Furler Street,Totowa, NJ
Commentary and analysis of NJ Workers' Compensation and Personal Injury Law
Civil Litigator:
$3.5 Million recovered since opening his firm in 2009
Prior to 2009, Mr. Kutyla was a partner with Gruber, Colabella, Kutyla & Williams.
Current News:
Sussex County Lawyers Directory
Now Live: The "new and improved" premier local legal online directory and resource for Sussex County, NJ legal needs: sussexcountylawyers.com.
We Need More Judges!
On Wednesday, December 7, 2011, Essex County Assignment Judge Patricia Costello suspended all trials in Track 3 and 4 Civil cases. This includes most, if not all, personal injury and employment cases. She also suspended all matrimonial trials. This means that if you have a civil or matrimonial case pending in Essex County Superior Court, your day in court has been postponed indefinitely.
The reason Judge Costello gave for the suspension was the eleven (11) judicial vacancies in Essex County. That's correct, Essex County Superior Court is short 11 judges! The primary reasons for the vacancies are political and economic. It is the job of Governor Christie to appoint the 11 missing judges and the job of the New Jersey Senate to approve (confirm) his appointments. It seems that the political process has broken down. The economic factor is that each judge costs the government about $200,000 per year in salary and benefits. The 11 vacancies saves the government about $2.2million dollars per year. And Essex is not the only county with judicial vacancies.
That lack of judges make the slow wheels of justice move even slower. A society without an expeditious system of resolving disputes will one day break down into anarchy. To my clients who complain that it takes too long to receive fair and just compensation through the courts, I urge you to write your Governor and your Senator demanding that these vacancies be filled immediately.
A Time to Settle
The words of Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, profoundly stated, "To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under Heaven." These ancient words are so relevant that 3,000 years later they became the lyrics to a hit song by The Byrds. Certainly, we can all understand that there is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to reap, a time for war and a time for peace. But to quote another popular song (this one from the band Chicago), "Does anybody really know what time it is?" Put another way, when the decision clearly lies with us, how do we know when it is time to continue down the road we are going or switch course - maybe even try something new altogether.
In 2009, after eleven years as a lawyer with the same firm, rising to the level of partner and making a pretty good living, I had to admit that I wasn't truly happy. I had to ask myself whether it was time to change. Since making what for me was a life changing decision, I have come to understand that every morning when my feet hit the floor, I must consiously decide whether I want to continue down this road or is today the day I do something completely different. Most days it is not a hard decision, my family needs income, my clients need a caring competent lawyer, and my staff need their jobs. People rely on me and I'm not going to let them down.
But, I am a litigator. Uncertainty is the nature of litigation. It is impossible for even the most experienced lawyer to know how a judge or jury is going to rule on any matter. While educated guesses are possible, any lawyer practicing more than five years would have to admit to being surprised on occasion. In fact, the less experienced an attorney is, the more likely he or she will be suprised by a court's ruling.
How then can I give a client competent advice? How can I tell an accident victim who is being offerred $250,000 for his injuries that he should hold out for $275,000 or go to trial? Sometimes this is a very hard call to make.
In situations like this, I am reminded that both Jesus Christ and Abraham Lincoln counseled against litigation and in favor of making peace, even if you think you may be getting short changed. I am also frequently reminded by judges and fellow lawyers that the best settlements are those with which neither side can claim victory and both sides are dissatisfied.
But perhaps the best advice is an old Wall Street addage that I first heard from Professor Dale Searcy while in law school. He said, "Life is like the stock market where bulls make money, and bears make money, but pigs get slaughtered." My philosophy therefore is be prepared for trial but never turn down a reasonble settlement - don't be a pig.
Failure to Report
Recently, in my practice as a Worker’s Compensation attorney, it has come to my attention that workers, employers and even attorneys who do not regularly handle workers’ compensation cases do not understand the importance of promptly reporting work related injuries. Failure to report even a minor injury and seek appropriate authorization for medical treatment from the workers’ compensation insurance carrier can result in unpaid medical bills and mountains of red tape for injured workers trying to recover from their injuries.
Summary of all posts
We Need More Judges!
On Wednesday, December 7, 2011, Essex County Assignment Judge Patricia Costello suspended all trials in Track 3 and 4 Civil cases. This includes most, if not all, personal injury and employment cases. She also suspended all matrimonial trials. This means that if you have a civil or matrimonial case pending in Essex County Superior Court, your day in court has been postponed indefinitely.
The reason Judge Costello gave for the suspension was the eleven (11) judicial vacancies in Essex County. That's correct, Essex County Superior Court is short 11 judges! The primary reasons for the vacancies are political and economic. It is the job of Governor Christie to appoint the 11 missing judges and the job of the New Jersey Senate to approve (confirm) his appointments. It seems that the political process has broken down. The economic factor is that each judge costs the government about $200,000 per year in salary and benefits. The 11 vacancies saves the government about $2.2million dollars per year. And Essex is not the only county with judicial vacancies.
That lack of judges make the slow wheels of justice move even slower. A society without an expeditious system of resolving disputes will one day break down into anarchy. To my clients who complain that it takes too long to receive fair and just compensation through the courts, I urge you to write your Governor and your Senator demanding that these vacancies be filled immediately.
A Time to Settle
The words of Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, profoundly stated, "To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under Heaven." These ancient words are so relevant that 3,000 years later they became the lyrics to a hit song by The Byrds. Certainly, we can all understand that there is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to reap, a time for war and a time for peace. But to quote another popular song (this one from the band Chicago), "Does anybody really know what time it is?" Put another way, when the decision clearly lies with us, how do we know when it is time to continue down the road we are going or switch course - maybe even try something new altogether.
In 2009, after eleven years as a lawyer with the same firm, rising to the level of partner and making a pretty good living, I had to admit that I wasn't truly happy. I had to ask myself whether it was time to change. Since making what for me was a life changing decision, I have come to understand that every morning when my feet hit the floor, I must consiously decide whether I want to continue down this road or is today the day I do something completely different. Most days it is not a hard decision, my family needs income, my clients need a caring competent lawyer, and my staff need their jobs. People rely on me and I'm not going to let them down.
But, I am a litigator. Uncertainty is the nature of litigation. It is impossible for even the most experienced lawyer to know how a judge or jury is going to rule on any matter. While educated guesses are possible, any lawyer practicing more than five years would have to admit to being surprised on occasion. In fact, the less experienced an attorney is, the more likely he or she will be suprised by a court's ruling.
How then can I give a client competent advice? How can I tell an accident victim who is being offerred $250,000 for his injuries that he should hold out for $275,000 or go to trial? Sometimes this is a very hard call to make.
In situations like this, I am reminded that both Jesus Christ and Abraham Lincoln counseled against litigation and in favor of making peace, even if you think you may be getting short changed. I am also frequently reminded by judges and fellow lawyers that the best settlements are those with which neither side can claim victory and both sides are dissatisfied.
But perhaps the best advice is an old Wall Street addage that I first heard from Professor Dale Searcy while in law school. He said, "Life is like the stock market where bulls make money, and bears make money, but pigs get slaughtered." My philosophy therefore is be prepared for trial but never turn down a reasonble settlement - don't be a pig.
Failure to Report
Recently, in my practice as a Worker’s Compensation attorney, it has come to my attention that workers, employers and even attorneys who do not regularly handle workers’ compensation cases do not understand the importance of promptly reporting work related injuries. Failure to report even a minor injury and seek appropriate authorization for medical treatment from the workers’ compensation insurance carrier can result in unpaid medical bills and mountains of red tape for injured workers trying to recover from their injuries.
