As reported by Politckernj.com, in the aftermath of Governor Chris Christie’s budget address, the leaders of the State’s Police and Fire Benevolent Associations announced their decision to file separate lawsuits aimed at making the Governor comply with the full funding of the public pensions.  Below, reprinted in its entirety, is a statement of explanation the leaders jointly issued hours after fourteen (14) other unions filed suit under the umbrella of the NJ AFL-CIO.

“As you are aware, we were recently victorious in a State Superior Court decision requiring that the Governor make the full pension contribution for Fiscal Year 2015 as required under Chapter 78.  We expect the Governor will appeal this decision and we are awaiting the next steps in this case.  While this is unfolding, we were not surprised to see the Governor propose a Budget for Fiscal Year 2016 that does no include a full pension payment.  While a budget does not become law until July 1, 2015, we believe the Governor’s announcement is a pre-emptory rejection of his obligation under Judge Jacobson’s decision to fully fund the pension systems.

A number of public employee unions, including the NJLEA have advised us of their intention to initiate a new lawsuit against the Governor in light of his proposed FY 2016 budget and invited us to join with them.  While we respect the other public sector unions, we believe the State PBA and FMBA have unique issues under PFRS warranting the filing of a separate lawsuit.  Our priorities in litigation will therefore differ from other unions.  We feel strongly that the significant differences in our pension systems and certainly some differences of opinion regarding the ‘Roadmap’ necessitate our organizations acting independently from the other labor unions.

Leadership from both our unions will continue to work with our legislature to submit a FY 2016 budget with the appropriate pension payment included.  Our memberships should be assured that while we continue to expect the legislature to comply with the law, we are also preparing a lawsuit to challenge the Governor’s unconstitutional budget proposal.”

Ed Donnelly, President NJFMBA  & Patrick Colligan, President NJSPBA

Please continue to check this blog periodically for updates regarding the impending lawsuits.  As you are all aware, these lawsuits will have massive implications on all NJ Public Safety Officers going forward.

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Photo of Donald C. Barbati Donald C. Barbati

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues…

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues litigated before the courts and administrative tribunals throughout the State of New Jersey. In addition, Mr. Barbati also routinely represents individuals in various types of public pension appeals, real estate transactions, and general litigation matters. He is a frequent contributor to the New Jersey Public Safety Officers Law Blog, a free legal publication designed to keep New Jersey public safety officers up-to-date and informed about legal issues pertinent to their profession. During his years of practice, Mr. Barbati has established a reputation for achieving favorable results for his clients in a cost-efficient manner.

Mr. Barbati has also handled numerous novel legal issues while representing New Jersey Public Safety Officers. Most notably, he served as lead counsel for the Appellants in the published case In re Rodriguez, 423 N.J. Super. 440 (App. Div. 2011). In that case, Mr. Barbati successfully argued on behalf of the Appellants, thereby overturning the Attorney General’s denial of counsel to two prison guards in a civil rights suit arising from an inmate assault. In the process, the Court clarified the standard to be utilized by the Attorney General in assessing whether a public employee is entitled to legal representation and mandated that reliance must be placed on up-to-date information.

Prior to becoming a practicing attorney, Mr. Barbati served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Linda R. Feinberg, Assignment Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Mercer Vicinage. During his clerkship Mr. Barbati handled numerous complex and novel substantive and procedural issues arising from complaints in lieu of prerogative writs, orders to show cause, and motion practice. These include appeals from decisions by planning and zoning boards and local government bodies, bidding challenges under the Local Public Contract Law, Open Public Records Act requests, the taking of private property under the eminent domain statute, and election law disputes. In addition, Mr. Barbati, as a certified mediator, mediated many small claims disputes in the Special Civil Part.

Mr. Barbati received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, magna cum laude, from Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Upon graduating, Mr. Barbati attended Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware. In 2007, he received his juris doctorate, magna cum laude, graduating in the top five percent of his class. During law school, Mr. Barbati interned for the Honorable Joseph E. Irenas, Senior United States District Court Judge for the District of New Jersey in Camden, New Jersey, assisting on various constitutional, employment, and Third Circuit Court of Appeals litigation, including numerous civil rights, social security, and immigration cases.