New Jersey businesses can be sued by a variety of sources including other businesses, non-profits, customers and the government. No matter who is suing a business, commercial litigation can slow businesses down and cost businesses money. Unless the right precautions are taken, litigation can prevent a business from working at all.
Recently, a federal judge has rejected a lawsuit against a New Jersey power company by environmental groups. The environmental groups were trying to stop construction of a 145 mile long power line project. The $1.2 billion project is running new power lines between eastern New Jersey and parts of Pennsylvania. Proponents of the new line say that it will free up bottlenecks in the current electrical grid and save consumers more than $200 million a year.
The environmental groups, on the other hand, claimed that this project was not correctly reviewed by the National park services to determine its environmental impact. They say it would affect local waterways. Furthermore, the groups claimed that the project violated the Organic Act because of the way permits were issued. The groups filed suit last October.
Now that the suit has been thrown out, the companies building the line can get to work. Officials say that dealing with the lawsuit was the last hurdle before construction could begin and that construction would begin immediately.
Lawsuits like this can be costly for New Jersey businesses if not handled correctly. With corporate disputes, contract disputes and other types of business litigation New Jersey businesses may feel pressure to settle the dispute in order to get on with work. However, these businesses should know that they have legal rights before and they can fight the suit in court.
Source: The Times-Tribune, “Judge tosses lawsuit to stop controversial PPL power line project,” James Haggerty, Sept. 4, 2013
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