Housing mandates in established farming communities have the potential to increase meritless nuisance lawsuits, says Assemblyman Alex Sauickie. His bill allowing commercial farmers to recover reasonable costs and attorney fees associated with bad faith lawsuits was passed by an Assembly committee on Thursday.

“As New Jersey mandates more and more residential development in traditionally rural areas, complaints over noise or other aspects of farming operations will continue to rise,” Sauickie (R-Ocean) said. 

The bill (A4603) enhances New Jersey’s 1983 Right to Farm Act by providing recourse for farmers unfairly forced into litigation. The act affirms accepted commercial farming practices and operations do not constitute a public or private nuisance. 

“The financial costs of defending against these claims can be very hard on farmers who are already facing tough times, even if the farmers ultimately win in court. This bill strengthens protections under current law by making sure they can recoup some of their costs,” Sauickie added.