Brian Whiteman (Partner-Florham Park, NJ) secured a dismissal with prejudice in an insurance broker malpractice litigation suit for the firm’s insurance broker client in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Morris County. The plaintiff, a steel contractor, was sued in an underlying bodily injury case by a worker who sustained a significant injury at a construction project. After coverage was denied, the plaintiff commenced a declaratory judgment action against his insurer, and asserted a professional malpractice claim against our client. Under New Jersey’s Affidavit of Merit Statute, N.J.S.A. 2A:53A-29 (the Statute), a plaintiff must provide an affidavit from an appropriately licensed person within 60 days of the defendant’s answer to the complaint noting a reasonable probability that the defendant’s conduct fell outside acceptable professional standards. With good cause shown, a plaintiff may have an additional 60 days to submit the affidavit. After Brian filed a motion to dismiss for failure to comply with the Statute, the court granted dismissal with prejudice of the complaint against the firm’s client, finding that the plaintiff’s reasons for the delayed affidavit failed to meet the “extraordinary circumstance” standard for relaxation of the Statute’s requirements.