 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Caviglia v. Royal Tours of America2/19/2004
sts seeking recovery for non-economic losses who did not select an alternative option. That alternative option did not require the insured to meet a monetary threshold or prove bodily injury, but instead gave him a right to unrestricted recovery for non-economic damages in exchange for higher premiums. L. 1988, c. 119, §§ 4, 6-7; Oswin, supra, 129 N.J. at 297; Jacques v. Kinsey, 347 N.J. Super. 112, 126 (Law Div. 2001). Requiring the uninsured motorist to meet the verbal threshold as a prerequisite to pursuing a lawsuit for personal injuries was an "important barrier designed to keep insurance costs down." Jacques, supra, 347 N.J. Super. at 125-26.
In 1997, the Legislature comprehensively amended N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.5 to bar three classes of people from suing for personal injuries in automobile accident cases: (a) persons who operate automobiles without insurance; (b) persons who drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs; and (c) persons who act with the intent to injure others while driving. The statute provides:
a. Any person who, at the time of an automobile accident resulting in injuries to that person, is required but fails to maintain medical expense benefits coverage mandated by [N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4 ] shall have no cause of action for recovery of economic or non-economic loss sustained as a result of an accident while operating an uninsured automobile.
[N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8a.]
b. Any person who is convicted of, or pleads guilty to, operating a motor vehicle in violation of [N.J.S.A. 39:4-50, -50.4a], or a similar statute from any other jurisdiction, in connection with an accident, shall have no cause of action for recovery of economic or non-economic loss sustained as a result of the accident.
c. Any person acting with specific intent of causing injury to himself or others in the operation or use of an automobile shall have no cause of action for recovery of economic or non-economic loss sustained as a result of an accident arising from such conduct.
[L. 1997, c. 151, § 13 (current version at N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.5) (emphasis added).]
Only subsection (a) of the amended statute forms the basis of the appeal in this case.
N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.5a advances a policy of cost containment by ensuring that an injured, uninsured driver does not draw on the pool of accident-victim insurance funds to which he did not contribute. See Rojas v. DePaolo, 357 N.J. Super. 115, 119 (Law Div. 2002) (noting section 4.5's "evident" purpose of reducing or stabilizing insurance prices). The legislation thus gives the uninsured driver a very powerful incentive to comply with the compulsory insurance laws: obtain automobile liability insurance coverage or lose the right to maintain a suit for both economic and non-economic injuries.
III.
The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees that no state may "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1. Those fundamental rights also are protected under our State Constitution. N.J. Const. art. I, 1. Although Article I, Paragraph 1 does not contain the express terms "equal protection" or "due process," we have construed the expansive language of that provision as guaranteeing those fundamental constitutional rights. Greenberg v. Kimmelman, 99 N.J. 552, 568 (1985); see also Sojourner A. v. New Jersey Dep't of Human Serv., 177 N.J. 318, 332 (2003). Under both constitutions, a statute is invalid on substantive due process grounds if it "seeks to promote state interest by impermissible means," and is inva
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 New Jersey Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|