Galette v. NJ Transit Corp.

The Supreme Court ruled that the New Jersey Transit Corporation is not an "arm of the state." This means the agency is not entitled to sovereign immunity (a legal rule that protects states from being sued) in other states.

This decision allows people to sue the transit agency in courts outside of New Jersey. For example, a person injured in a crash in Philadelphia can now seek justice in a Pennsylvania court instead of being blocked by immunity rules.

The Court had to decide if a corporation created by a state should get the same special legal protections as the state itself. By ruling against the agency, the Court limited the reach of interstate sovereign immunity for government-run corporations.

9-0

“The New Jersey Transit Corporation is not an arm of the state of New Jersey and thus is not entitled to share in New Jersey’s interstate sovereign immunity.”

New Jersey Transit is a separate entity that can be held accountable in other states' courts for its actions.

The case will return to the lower courts to move forward with the negligence lawsuit. Other state-created agencies across the country may now face similar lawsuits in different states.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court previously held that NJ Transit was an arm of the state of New Jersey. This would have given the agency immunity from being sued in Pennsylvania courts.

In 2018, Cedric Galette was injured in Philadelphia when his vehicle was struck by an NJ Transit vehicle. He sued for negligence, but the agency claimed it was protected by state immunity.

The Court consolidated multiple cases where state courts had reached opposite conclusions about NJ Transit's status. The 9-0 ruling creates a uniform standard that NJ Transit is not an arm of the state.