Appeals Court Affirms Dismissal of Case as Time Barred

New Jersey Appellate Division Affirms Dismissal of Appeal Filed Out of Time

A New Jersey appellate court affirmed the dismissal of a 2006 property tax appeal that was filed five months past the statutorily mandated filing date.  The court rejected the plaintiff’s contentions that the tax assessor’s certification and bulk mailing postage statement were insufficient to support a presumption of mailing by the assessor and that plaintiff received the assessment.  Ocean Township filed a motion to dismiss supported by the assessor’s certification which stated that the bulk mailing went to all taxpayers, no address change requests had been made, and that the mailing had not been returned as undeliverable.  The Appellate Division found that these unrefuted facts, and the absence of any denial by plaintiff that it did not receive the mailing, were sufficient to presume plaintiff timely received the mailing.  Thus, plaintiff’s complaint was properly dismissed by the Tax Court.

A copy of the Appellate Division’s opinion in Ocean Seniors, LLC, v. Ocean Township, A-4182-08, (App. Div. 2010), can be found here.

The author wishes to acknowledge the assistance of Cory K. Kestner, Esq., of McKirdy & Riskin, PA, in the preparation of this article.