The NJ Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Dunbar Homes, Inc. v. Township of Franklin, with the League as amicus curiae. The case deals with the trigger timing of Municipal Land Use Law’s (MLUL), “Time of Application Rule."
On Monday, the NJ Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Dunbar Homes, Inc. v. Township of Franklin, a case which the League has joined as amicus curiae. In short, this case deals with the Municipal Land Use Law’s (MLUL), “Time of Application Rule,” which is used to determine what municipal ordinances govern a land use development application. As the name denotes, this provision of the MLUL provides that the ordinances effective at the time of application are those which the development application must adhere to.
Specifically under review in the Dunbar case is when is an application complete, thus triggering the time of application rule? The Appellate Division, finding the language of the MLUL unambiguous, sided with the municipality and ruled that the time of application rule is only triggered once an application for development is complete, and an application for development is not complete until all documents required by municipal ordinance have been submitted. The developer argued that the time of application rule could be triggered when the application is submitted with substantially all the required items regardless if all required documents are submitted.
Now that oral arguments have been heard, the Supreme Court will review the Appellate Division’s decision and issue a final ruling. There is no definitive date for when this ruling will be issued but it is anticipated to be sometime in mid-to-late summer. We will keep our members updated on any developments in this important matter.
We would like to thank League Associate Counsel Clifford Gibbons, Esq., who represented the League, for his outstanding work on this matter.
Contact: Frank Marshall, Esq., League Staff Attorney, FMarshall@njslom.org, 609-695-3481, x137.