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As reported by NJ.com, a Superior Court judge is expected to decide whether to order members of the State’s teachers’ union in a dispute with Governor Chris Christie’s administration to give up its boycott of meetings setting health care benefits for public employees.  The administration took members of the New Jersey Education Association who sit on the School Employees’ Health Benefits Commission to court, arguing they are neglecting their responsibilities by skipping meetings in order to block the State from pushing through changes in health care coverage for retirees.

The change will save the State $74 million this year, according to court documents filed by the State.  The State also contends the teachers’ union’s absence is preventing the Commission from setting premium rates for next year.  The NJEA, which represents more that 200,000 members, has accused Christie of refusing to fill a vacancy set aside for union representatives to manipulate the vote.  The seat, which belongs to a representative of the AFL-CIO, has been vacant since August 2015.

The State seeks to require the members to commit to attend one or more meetings from September 8 to September 15.  If they do not comply, the State wants the Commission to set the rates and vote on the Medicare Advantage change without a quorum.  “If they are allowed to continue to remain truant from the meeting, they hold Medicare Advantage hostage and are in effect forcing a no vote without the other commissioners, without public deliberation, without anything,” said Jean Reilly, an assistant attorney general.  The attorney for the union said that members have not received adequate information about how the switch would affect retirees’ benefits.

Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson suggested the legal spat could have been avoided if the State simply presented the Medicare Advantage proposal at one meeting and held the vote at another.

Please continue to check this blog periodically for updates pertaining to this case.

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DONALD C. BARBATI, JR.

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.