New Jersey Supreme Court Rejects Mandatory Malpractice Insurance, embraces disclosure of coverage

The New Jersey Supreme Court has issued a Notice to the Bar.  It has rejected in part, accepted in part, and deferred in part the recommendations of its Ad Hoc Committee on Attorney Malpractice Insurance.  It concurred with the November 2017 report recommendation that malpractice insurance not be mandated for all private practitioners.  The Court retains its Rule 1:21-1A that all limited liability firms must carry insurance in the minimum amount of $100,000 (multiplied by the number of attorneys in the firm). The Court concurred with its Committee that lawyers be required to publicly register evidence of the coverage they carry.  The Administrative Office of the Courts is directed to develop procudures to implement the principle.  And the Court announced that it will revisit at an unspecified date whether attorneys who lack coverage should be required to disclose that fact. - gwc