CLEARY GIACOBBE ALFIERI JACOBS PREVAILS appeal arising from termination of cheif school administrator for conduct unbecoming

On November 26, 2025, Cleary Giacobbe Alfieri Jacobs (“CGAJ”) prevailed in the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey when the Court refused to overturn an arbitrator’s decision that the Montague Board of Education (“Board”) had sustained charges of unbecoming conduct against its chief school administrator and that termination was warranted in Capone v. Montague Board of Education.

Timothy Capone (“Capone”) had appealed the trial court’s denial of his motion to vacate an arbitration award terminating him as chief school administrator. The Board had placed Capone on leave following allegations of retaliation, intimidation, and discrimination against staff, as well as interference in Board elections. The Board’s investigation, conducted by CGAJ, led to a seven-count statement of tenure charges, including conduct unbecoming and neglect of duty, based on findings that Capone mistreated staff he disliked by refusing to speak or interact with those who did not support him; engaged in verbally and emotionally demeaning conduct toward specific staff members; called a staff member derogatory names and made inappropriate comments about the member’s sexual orientation; directed staff to withhold an athletic consent form to cause a student to miss part of an athletic program because he did not like the student’s parents; and enlisted staff to create social media accounts to attack his opponents on the Board, among other charges. The arbitrator found insufficient evidence for neglect of duty but upheld the conduct-unbecoming charges and concluded that Capone’s actions warranted termination due to the lack of trust and respect necessary for his role.

Capone argued in his court challenge that the arbitrator exceeded her powers and that the award was procured by undue means, citing alleged due-process violations, procedural delays, and misapplication of the law regarding just cause. The trial judge rejected Capone’s claim that he was entitled to notice and an opportunity to respond before being placed on leave, finding that his employment contract did not provide such a process. The judge also found no due-process violation because Capone received notice of the charges and had ample opportunity to defend against them. The trial judge further rejected Capone’s arguments regarding just cause and proportionality of the punishment.

The Appellate Division found no merit in Capone’s claims regarding procedural errors or proportionality of the penalty and held that N.J.S.A. 18A:17-20.2 does not predicate a finding of conduct unbecoming or the ability to terminate on the “just cause” standard discussed in a New Jersey School Boards Association article or on the factors set forth in In re Tenure Hearing of Fulcomer, 93 N.J. Super. 404 (App. Div. 1967).

Joseph A. Garcia, Esq., and Anthony LoBrace, Esq., handled the investigation, prevailed in the arbitration, and successfully defended the arbitrator’s decision in the trial court. Mary Anne Groh, Esq., handled the appeal in the Appellate Division.