Terms Used In New Jersey Statutes 2A:156A-32

  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • person: includes corporations, companies, associations, societies, firms, partnerships and joint stock companies as well as individuals, unless restricted by the context to an individual as distinguished from a corporate entity or specifically restricted to one or some of the above enumerated synonyms and, when used to designate the owner of property which may be the subject of an offense, includes this State, the United States, any other State of the United States as defined infra and any foreign country or government lawfully owning or possessing property within this State. See New Jersey Statutes 1:1-2
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
26. Civil action.

a. Except as provided in subsection d. of section 23 of P.L.1993, c.29 (C. 2A:156A-29), any service provider, subscriber or customer aggrieved by any violation of sections 21, 22, 23, or 24 of P.L.1993, c.29 (C.2A:156A-27, C.2A:156A-28, C. 2A:156A-29 or C. 2A:156A-30) may recover, in a civil action, such relief as may be appropriate from the person or entity which knowingly or purposefully engaged in the conduct constituting the violation.

b. In a civil action under this section, appropriate relief may include:

(1) such preliminary and other equitable or declaratory relief as may be appropriate;

(2) damages under subsection c. of this section; and

(3) reasonable attorney’s fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred.

c. The court may assess as damages in a civil action under this section the sum of the actual damages suffered by the plaintiff and any profits made by the violator as a result of the violation, but in no case shall a person entitled to recover receive less than the sum of $1,000.

d. A civil action under this section may not be commenced later than two years after the date upon which the claimant first discovered or had a reasonable opportunity to discover the violation.

L.1993,c.29,s.26.