The New Jersey Appellate Division weighed in Friday on two putative class actions reaching different conclusions by Camden County judges in suits over contaminated water, clarifying that municipalities charging a water fee do not create an implied contract with their residents.
The issue in both cases, Cerkez v. Gloucester City and Hoffman v. Borough of Brooklawn, centered on whether the defendant municipalities have an implied contractual relationship with the plaintiff residents, who received metered, potable water, according to the opinion. However, the Camden County Superior Court overseeing the cases reached opposite decisions as to whether the residents may sue the municipalities for allegedly high contamination in a breach-of-contract suit.
