CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS CALL ON COUNCILWOMAN FISHER TO REIMBURSE HOBOKEN TAXPAYERS COSTS FROM FRIVOLOUS LAWSUIT DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE BY HUDSON COUNTY JUDGE

Below are statements from Councilmembers Doyle, Jabbour, Cohen and Quintero regarding a frivolous lawsuit brought by Councilwoman Fisher against the City that was dismissed with prejudice by a Hudson County Judge.

Statement from Councilwoman Emily Jabbour:

“Thank you to Judge Turula for seeing this lawsuit for what it was – a nonsense political stunt. Councilwoman Fisher should do the right thing and reimburse the City for its costs, and to engage with her colleagues in a productive way rather than filing frivolous lawsuits at the expense of Hoboken taxpayers.”

Statement from Councilman Phil Cohen:

“Councilwoman Fisher easily could have withdrawn her case when the Council addressed her concerns by passing the campaign finance legislation on first and second reading in the new year. Instead, she forced the City to defend her baseless claims, costing taxpayers thousands of dollars. Councilwoman Fisher claims to be a watchdog of the taxpayer dollar, but this is yet the latest example that she is anything but. I’m disappointed by her attempt to seek political benefit from this frivolous lawsuit. She should reimburse the City the full cost of defending her bogus case.”

Statement from Councilman Joe Quintero:

“What’s disappointing here is that there was a missed opportunity for Councilwoman Fisher to reach out to her council colleagues to solve this issue. An issue, by the way, which was solved by a simple re-vote. Instead she jumped to costly litigation at the expense of our tax payers. This was simply a waste of money and I think it’s right that the City seek reimbursement. Our residents expect more from us.”

Statement from Councilman Jim Doyle:

“I agree with my council colleagues that Councilwoman Fisher should have dropped the case when the ordinance was reintroduced and passed in 2022.  At that juncture, her stubborn refusal to do so merely resulted in the pointless expenditure of legal fees by the City’s law department until the matter was ultimately thrown out.  I understand that the judge in the matter was none too happy with the continuing presence of the case on the court’s docket. Perhaps the Councilwoman should consider reimbursing the taxpayers for these ill-spent funds?”