NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION This opinion shall not "constitute precedent or be binding upon any court ." Although it is posted on the internet, this opinion is binding only on the parties in the case and its use in other cases is limited. R. 1:36-3. SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY APPELLATE DIVISION DOCKET NO. A-3219-19 STEPHANIE HALLIDAY, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. BIOREFERENCE LABORATORIES, INC., Defendant-Respondent. _________________________ Argued September 14, 2021 – Decided August 3, 2022 Before Judges Sumners and Vernoia. On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Essex County, Docket No. L-6043-17. Scott Newar, of the Texas Bar, admitted pro hac vice, argued the cause for appellant (Green Savits, LLC, attorneys; Scott Newar, of counsel and on the briefs; Glen D. Savits, on the briefs). Amber M. Spataro argued the cause for respondent (Littler Mendelson, PC, attorneys; Amber M. Spataro and Dylan C. Dindial, on the brief). PER CURIAM Plaintiff Stephanie Halliday filed a single-count complaint alleging defendant Bioreference Laboratories, Inc. violated the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA), N.J.S.A. 34:19-1 to -14, by terminating her employment in retaliation for complaints and objections she made to her supervisors concerning defendant's alleged operation of its Houston, Texas laboratory in contravention of federal safety and health regulations and the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA), 42 U.S.C. § 263a to a- 7.1 Plaintiff appeals from an order granting defendant summary judgment, arguing the court erred by determining Texas law, and not New Jersey law under CEPA, applies to the resolution of her wrongful termination claim, and by concluding that even if CEPA applied, her cause of action should be dismissed because she failed to present evidence the termination of her employment is causally connected to her complaints. 1 The CEPA claim also includes an allegation defendant terminated plaintiff's employment in retaliation for her complaints and objections concerning defendant's purported violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, 29 U.S.C. §§ 651-678. That claim, and the court's summary judgment award to defendant on it, are not addressed in plaintiff's brief on appeal. We therefore do not address it. Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP v. N.J. Dept. of Law & Pub. Safety, 421 N.J. Super. 489, 496 n.5 (App. Div. 2011) (explaining an issue not briefed on appeal is deemed abandoned). A-3219-19 2 Based on our review of the record, the parties' arguments, and the applicable legal principles, we conclude there is a genuine issue of material fact that precluded the court's determination Texas law applies to defendant's CEPA claim and the court did not make adequate findings of fact and conclusions of law supporting its determination. R. 1:7-4. We do not address the merits of the court's determination defendant is entitled to summary judgment on the CEPA claim because the court did not make sufficient findings of fact and conclusions of law supporting its determination. We therefore vacate the court's order and remand for further proceedings. I. In our review of a summary …
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