Harry D. Norton, Jr.
Biography
Harry D. Norton, Jr. is a Partner in our New Jersey office, and he has defended insurers and insureds for more than 40 years.
Harry is sought after by both courts and law firms for his skills as an arbitrator and mediator. He specializes in insurance matters including personal injury reimbursement claims, premises liability, construction, governmental liability, and other disputes. He also represents clients in arbitration and mediation and on appeal.
Before joining Hall Booth Smith in 2021, he was a Partner at Norton, Sheehy, Murphy & Corrubia, P.C., a law firm in New Jersey.
Harry serves as a Municipal Court Judge in six different municipalities and has served as a Borough Attorney or Special Counsel for the municipalities of Saddle River, Ramsey, and the Village of Ridgefield Park as well as for the cities of Hackensack, Clifton, and Paterson.
He is a panel attorney for the South Bergen County Joint Insurance Fund, the Municipal Excess Liability Fund for Public Officials and Employment Practices Liability, and the New Jersey Intergovernmental Insurance Fund for Municipal Liability. He also serves on the mediation panel for the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
Earlier in his career, Harry was an Assistant Prosecutor in the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, serving as Chief of the Trial Section and Chief of the Grand Jury Section. He was a law secretary for the Honorable John L. Ard in the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey.
Harry earned a Juris Doctor from Seton Hall University, where he served as the Director of the Legislative Bureau and received the Seton Hall Law Center Alumni Award. He also completed a Bachelor of Arts in Government and Law at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, where he was the recipient of the Pepper Prize for outstanding leadership and was named to the Dean’s List.
Harry is an avid golfer, and he has been a member of the Hackensack Golf Club for more than 25 years; a member of the Marsh Creek Country Club in St. Augustine, Florida, for more than 20 years; a member of the Trenton Country Club for more than a decade, and an overseas member of the County Sligo Golf Club at Rosses Point in Ireland.
Experience
Harry represents clients through the appellate process to overturn unfavorable verdicts or preserve hard-fought victories.
Alternative dispute resolution forums have an important place in the legal process, and Harry guides clients through arbitration and mediation when those avenues are the most expedient and cost-effective ways to resolve litigation.
Harry represents builders, developers, owners, investors, insurers, and other parties in complex construction projects, including contracts, compliance with rules and regulations, insurance coverage, liability, defects, damage, injury, and more.
Civil servants face more pressure than ever before on the job as they handle the complexities of federal, state, and local demands as well as the needs of the public. Harry works with municipal and government clients to protect their interests in a vast range of government liability matters, including best practices and risk reduction strategies, internal investigations, and litigation defense.
Harry represents insurers and insureds in claims resolution as well as daily needs such as policy procurement and coverage advice.
Harry defends clients in a host of premises liability litigation, including injury, workers’ compensation, damage, theft, and property loss. He understands that reducing the likelihood of claims in the first place is an important part of any legal strategy, so he also counsels clients on best practices, risk mitigation, and loss prevention.
Credentials
Admitted
State Courts:
- New Jersey
- New York
U.S. District Courts:
- U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
U.S. Courts of Appeals:
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court
Education
- J.D., Seton Hall University
- B.A., Lafayette College
Memberships
- DRI: Member
- Bergen County Bar Association:
- Judicial Section Committee: Chairman
- Law Day Committee: Member
- Mock Trial Competition: Coordinator
- Municipal Court Committee: Member
- New Jersey Defense Association: Member
- New Jersey Institute of Local Government Attorneys: Trustee
- New Jersey State Bar Association:
- Insurance Defense Committee: Member, 2022-2023
- Automobile Litigation and No Fault Committee: Co-Chair, 2021-2022
- Passaic County Bar Association:
- Trustee: 2017-2020
- Supreme Court of New Jersey District XI Ethics Committee: Member, 1997-2000
- Chair: 1999-2000
- Vice Chair: 1998-1999
- Bench Bar Liaison Committee: Chair
- Office of Attorney Ethics: Volunteer III Member, Appointed by Supreme Court, 2010-2014
Recognition
- AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated™, Martindale-Hubbell
- New Jersey Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers®, 2012-2024
- Lawyer Achievement Award, Bergen County Bar Foundation
- Distinguished Practitioner, Passaic County Bar Association
Presentations
- New Jersey Personal Injury Litigation, Secrets Only the Top Attorneys Know: Advanced Voir Dire and Jury Selection Techniques
National Business Institute, October 2022 - DWI Institute Panelist
New Jersey State Bar Association 2022 - Hot Topics in Insurance
New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting and Convention, May 2022 - Municipal Court Practice 101
New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting and Convention, May 2022
- New Jersey Insurance Fair Conduct Act: A Look at the New Law, Bad Faith, & the Future for Auto Injury Cases
NJSBA Automobile Litigation and No-Fault Special Committee CLE, March 2022 - Insurance Law Update: Special Considerations Concerning the New Jersey Tort Claims Act with respect to Public Property
Mercer County Bar Association Xtreme CLE, October 2021 - Staying on Your Feet in Slip and Fall Cases
New Jersey State Bar Association CLE Panel, September 2021 - The Basics of Representing Individuals Charged with Driving Under the Influence in Municipal Court
New Jersey State Bar Association CLE Panel, September 2021 - Federal Civil Practice
NJDA Annual Meeting, June 2021 - Municipal Court Practice – A View from the Bench
Bergen County Bar Association, September 2019 - DWI Institute 2019
New Jersey State Bar Association, August 2019 - Municipal Court Practice
New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting, 2019 - Municipal Court Practice
New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting, 2018 - 2017 Civil Case Law Update
New Jersey Defense Association Annual Meeting; Hershey, Pennsylvania; June 2017 - Hot Tips Seminar
Passaic County Bar Association, April 2017 - Auto Injuries: Advanced Plaintiff Strategies
National Business Institute, April 2017 - Civil Reservation of Rights: Application of Maida v. Kuskin in Personal Injury Actions
CLE Seminar; New Brunswick, New Jersey; August 2016 - DWI Institute
New Jersey State Bar Association; New Brunswick, New Jersey; August 2016 - Auto Injury Litigation from Start to Finish
National Business Institute, July 2016 - Introduction to Motion Practice and Trial Techniques in Municipal Court
New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting; Atlantic City, New Jersey; May 2016. - Wrongful Death Litigation: Start to Finish
National Business Institute, December 2015 - Municipal Court Practice – A View from the Bench
Bergen County Bar Association meeting, December 2015 - DWI Arrests
Mid-Year State Bar Association Meeting panel; New Orleans, Louisiana; November 2015 - DWI Institute
New Jersey State Bar Association conference; New Brunswick, New Jersey; August 2015. - Hot Tips in Civil Litigation
Institute for Continuing Education at New Jersey State Bar Association Headquarters; New Brunswick, New Jersey; September 2014 - Municipal Court 101 – Trying Cases in Municipal Court: The Basics
New Jersey State Bar Association Annual Meeting; Atlantic City, New Jersey; May 2014 - Hot Tips in Civil Litigation
New Jersey State Bar Association; Mid-Year Meeting; Rome, Italy; November 2013
Publications
- Litigating the Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Claim
National Business Institute, October 2012 - Settling Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Claim
National Business Institute, March 2010 - Getting the Best Settlement in Auto Injury Cases
National Business Institute, September 2009 - Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Law in New Jersey
National Business Institute, 2001