Bill Suggests New Jersey Lawyer Wait 30 Days to Contact Victim
Ambulance chasers would have to give accident victims a 30 day head start under a bill that cleared an Assembly panel this morning.
The bill (S2316) would require personal injury lawyers and others who offer their services to wait one month before writing to accident victims. Those who violate the law would face criminal charges, including possible prison time.
The bill, which was approved 6-0, is scheduled for a vote in the full Senate Monday.
Three of measure’s sponsors – State Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Union), Assemblyman Jon Bramnick (R-Union) and Assemblyman Peter Barnes (D-Middlesex) – practice personal injury law.
“Over my 30 years of practice, I have seen some things that shock the conscience,” said Bramnick.
Scutari said writing to victims immediately after a disaster or accident “gives the profession a bad name.”
“I think most good personal injury attorneys do not include this kind of practice because it’s unsavory,” he said.
Violating the measure would be a third degree crime, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $15,000 fine.
Although nobody voted against the measure or testified against it, some did raise concerns. Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll (R-Morris) and Todd Sidor, Director of Government Affairs at the New Jersey State Bar Association, both said it may run into constitutional roadblocks.
The state Supreme Court has jurisdiction over how attorneys practice law, including advertising, Sidor said.
Carroll, who voted yes on the legislation, suggested amending it so remove the criminal penalties for the offense, and to instead make it an ethics violation.
“I’m increasingly convinced that although I’ll this bill today it probably could use some amendments to take it out of the criminal statutes,” he said.