Partner Lou Vogel prevailed on an appeal in the New Jersey Appellate Division seeking to reverse the entry of summary judgment in favor of an HVAC contractor in a lawsuit arising out of a catastrophic fire involving residential property. Plaintiff’s complaint alleged common law fraud, violations of the Consumer Fraud Act (CFA), N.J.S.A. 56:8-1 to -227, and negligence. The trial Court granted summary judgment after concluding that Plaintiff’s engineering expert failed to provide an admissible opinion concerning duty or causation. The Appellate Division agreed the expert reports constituted inadmissible net opinion as to duty and causation. The Court further held that the CFA claims failed due to Plaintiff’s failure to establish causation through admissible expert opinion, which rendered Plaintiff unable to prove an ascertainable loss related to any alleged violation of the Act.