Hubbard Ex Rel. Hubbard v. Reed

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

PORITZ, C.J.

This case and Palanque v. Lambert-Woolley, 168 N.J. 387, 774 A.2d 501 (2001), also decided today, are the seventh and eighth malpractice actions to require intervention by this Court for a determination of the meaning and applicability of the Affidavit of Merit Statute enacted six years ago. Plaintiffs have raised numerous issues in a variety of factual settings that implicate both the language of the statute and the Legislature’s intent. In our opinions we have focused on the legislative goals, and on the words and phrases used by the…