Partner
New Jersey Office
T 973.863.7601
F 973.994.3375


Professional malpractice, complex civil litigation, construction law, civil rights and employment law; public entity liability defense, personal injury defense, and insurance coverage disputes; healthcare and hospital law; insurance regulation; and civil appeals.

Education
Rutgers University B.A. 1964
Indiana University J.D. 1967
New York University L.L.M. (in taxation) 1972

Bar Admissions
New Jersey; United States District Court for the District of New Jersey; United States Court of Appeals for Third Circuit.

Martindale-Hubbell Legal Rating:

AV



Associations
International Association of Defense Counsel; Former Chairman of Legal Malpractice Committee of IADC; Chairman of the Professional Errors and Omissions Committee of IADC; Chair of the IADC’s Professional Liability Roundtable; Essex County, New Jersey State and American Bar Associations; Order of the Coif; former Chairman of West Essex County Fee Arbitration Dispute Committee; Professional Liability Underwriting Society; Associate Member, American Bar Association Lawyers Professional Liability Committee; Member of Council of Litigation Management (CLM).

 
ELLIOTT ABRUTYN
EAbrutyn@morganlawfirm.com

Seminars, Speeches and Articles

Published Opinions

Mr. Abrutyn handles all types of professional liability cases, complex civil litigation, commercial litigation, insurance coverage disputes and civil appeals. He is also the Firm’s Managing Partner and Chairman of the Executive Committee.

Mr. Abrutyn has an extensive appellate practice and has argued several precedent setting cases before the New Jersey Supreme Court. His most notable case was Morton International v. General Accident Ins. Co., 134 N.J. 1 (1993), in which the Supreme Court clarified the definition of occurrence and the meaning of the pollution exclusion in general liability policies. Recently the Supreme Court in Liberty Surplus Insurance Corporation, Inc., v. Nowell, Amoroso, P.A., 189 N.J. 436 (2007), which involved the prior knowledge condition in a lawyers malpractice policy affirmed a summary judgment obtained by Mr. Abrutyn in favor of the insurer on appeal. He also argued and received four precedent setting decisions from the New Jersey Supreme Court in the following cases: Kane v. Hartz Mountain Industries, Inc.,143 N.J. 141 (1996), in which the court clarified the duties of owners, contractors and subcontractors in construction work place accidents;Zirger v. General Accident Ins. Co., 144 N.J. 237 (1996), in which the court determined that a jury award is binding upon an underinsured motorist insurer who did not participate at the trial, however, the decision was prospective and the Supreme Court set forth guidelines on seeking the intervention of the insurer at the liability trial; Lyn-Anna Properties, Ltd. v. Harborview Development Corp., 145 N.J. 313 (1995), where the court held that a defendant in an equity action who filed a counterclaim for legal malpractice against the plaintiff-attorney was not entitled to a jury trial; and, in the case of American Motorists Insurance Co. v. L-C-A Sales Co., 155 N.J. 29 (1998), the Supreme Court held that a wrongful termination and age discrimination claim is not covered under a general liability policy. Below is a list of the published opinions Mr. Abrutyn has presented to an appellate court.

Work Experience
1968-Present Morgan, Melhuish, Abrutyn
1967-1968 Law Clerk to the Honorable Ralph L. Fusco, Judge of the New Jersey Superior Court.