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Peter G. VernieroMember

Peter G. Verniero is Chair of the Sills Cummis & Gross Corporate Investigations and Integrity Practice Group as well as the Appellate Practice Group.

He joined the Firm in September of 2004 after serving as a justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, the state’s highest tribunal. At the time of his appointment, he was the youngest member of the Court in modern history. Prior to his judicial service, Mr. Verniero served as the 51st Attorney General of New Jersey as well as chief of staff and chief counsel to Governor Christine Todd Whitman. He is the only person in the state’s history to have served in those four senior positions within the executive and judicial branches.

As a member of the Supreme Court, Mr. Verniero authored and signed 124 judicial opinions touching on a wide array of topics, including employment, corporate and constitutional law. Among other opinions, he authored the Court’s opinion inIn re PSE & G Shareholder Litigation, 173 N.J. 258 (2002), which articulated and applied a modified business judgment rule in upholding the dismissal of shareholder-derivative litigation. That opinion has been cited by numerous courts, including the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the Court of Appeals for the State of California and the Supreme Court of Minnesota. Other judicial opinions authored by then-Justice Verniero have been cited by courts at different levels in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Hampshire, Alabama and Hawaii.

As Attorney General, Mr. Verniero personally argued cases before the New Jersey Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. InE.B. v. Verniero, 119 F.3d 1077 (3d Cir. 1997), he argued successfully in defense of Megan’s Law, New Jersey’s sexual-offender notification statute. At the time of the Third Circuit’s decision, it was the first federal appellate court ruling in the country upholding a state’s version of Megan’s Law.

He has continued his appellate practice at the Firm, frequently filing briefs and appearing at oral argument before appellate courts. As just one example, Mr. Verniero represented Johnson & Johnson, successfully arguing before the New Jersey Appellate Division for the reversal of a $223 million jury verdict. That was one of the largest verdicts against J&J to be overturned in talc litigation in New Jersey. He also argues before the state Supreme Court. He has filed briefs or personally argued over a dozen times before that Court (including two cases that he had argued as Attorney General).   Read More...

As other examples of his work, Mr. Verniero represented Third Point LLC as part of its proxy contest for the election of directors to the board of Campbell Soup Co. Working with New York counsel, he filed suit on Third Point’s behalf in state court in the Camden Vicinage. Mr. Verniero personally argued twice in court before the matter settled, with Third Point successfully placing two of its nominees on the Campbell board and gaining a role in selecting a third director and the hiring of Campbell’s CEO. In addition, Mr. Verniero has advised numerous entities in matters pending before various state and federal regulatory or law enforcement agencies, including the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and the United States Department of Justice.

The State of New Jersey has retained Mr. Verniero to handle matters under the respective administrations of Governors Chris Christie and Philip Murphy.

He also has chaired numerous governmental advisory panels as well as committees of the state Supreme Court. He currently chairs the Court’s Board on Continuing Legal Education, which administers New Jersey’s CLE program and assists in promulgating regulations, subject to the Court’s approval. He is the past chair of the Professional Responsibility Rules Committee, which considers and recommends attorney ethics rules to the Court. He is the past vice chair of the Civil Practice Committee, which performs a similar function with respect to the civil court rules.

Mr. Verniero annotates and provides commentary to theRules Governing the Courts of the State of New Jersey, a widely used reference guide for the legal profession published by Gann Law Books.

Mr. Verniero’s essays on legal and public policy issues also are widely published, appearing in such publications asThe Wall Street Journal,The New York Times,The Star-Ledger of Newark,The Philadelphia Inquirer andThe Investor’s Business Daily. In addition to writing essays, he is frequently quoted on legal topics in various media outlets.

He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards. After concluding his service on the Supreme Court, Mr. Verniero received the Medal of Honor, the highest award conferred by the New Jersey Bar Foundation. He also received the Gatekeeper Award in recognition of his “leadership in restoring public confidence in the law,” given by Common Good, a national bipartisan legal reform organization. He and his spouse have been honored by SAFE of Hunterdon in recognition of their efforts to end domestic violence.

As a former state Attorney General, Mr. Verniero is a member of the Society of Attorneys General Emeriti and frequently attends meetings of the National Association of Attorneys General. He has lectured on effective appellate advocacy at meetings of various entities, including county bar associations.

Mr. Verniero began his career as a Law Clerk to the Honorable Robert L. Clifford of the New Jersey Supreme Court. He also was an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the County College of Morris, where he taught business law.   Read Less

Peter G. Verniero is Chair of the Sills Cummis & Gross Corporate Investigations and Integrity Practice Group as well as the Appellate Practice Group.

He joined the Firm in September of 2004 after serving as a justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, the state’s highest tribunal. At the time of his appointment, he was the youngest member of the Court in modern history. Prior to his judicial service, Mr. Verniero served as the 51st Attorney General of New Jersey as well as chief of staff and chief counsel to Governor Christine Todd Whitman. He is the only person in the state’s history to have served in those four senior positions within the executive and judicial branches.

As a member of the Supreme Court, Mr. Verniero authored and signed 124 judicial opinions touching on a wide array of topics, including employment, corporate and constitutional law. Among other opinions, he authored the Court’s opinion inIn re PSE & G Shareholder Litigation, 173 N.J. 258 (2002), which articulated and applied a modified business judgment rule in upholding the dismissal of shareholder-derivative litigation. That opinion has been cited by numerous courts, including the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the Court of Appeals for the State of California and the Supreme Court of Minnesota. Other judicial opinions authored by then-Justice Verniero have been cited by courts at different levels in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Hampshire, Alabama and Hawaii.

As Attorney General, Mr. Verniero personally argued cases before the New Jersey Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. InE.B. v. Verniero, 119 F.3d 1077 (3d Cir. 1997), he argued successfully in defense of Megan’s Law, New Jersey’s sexual-offender notification statute. At the time of the Third Circuit’s decision, it was the first federal appellate court ruling in the country upholding a state’s version of Megan’s Law.

He has continued his appellate practice at the Firm, frequently filing briefs and appearing at oral argument before appellate courts. As just one example, Mr. Verniero represented Johnson & Johnson, successfully arguing before the New Jersey Appellate Division for the reversal of a $223 million jury verdict. That was one of the largest verdicts against J&J to be overturned in talc litigation in New Jersey. He also argues before the state Supreme Court. He has filed briefs or personally argued over a dozen times before that Court (including two cases that he had argued as Attorney General).

As other examples of his work, Mr. Verniero represented Third Point LLC as part of its proxy contest for the election of directors to the board of Campbell Soup Co. Working with New York counsel, he filed suit on Third Point’s behalf in state court in the Camden Vicinage. Mr. Verniero personally argued twice in court before the matter settled, with Third Point successfully placing two of its nominees on the Campbell board and gaining a role in selecting a third director and the hiring of Campbell’s CEO. In addition, Mr. Verniero has advised numerous entities in matters pending before various state and federal regulatory or law enforcement agencies, including the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and the United States Department of Justice.

The State of New Jersey has retained Mr. Verniero to handle matters under the respective administrations of Governors Chris Christie and Philip Murphy.

He also has chaired numerous governmental advisory panels as well as committees of the state Supreme Court. He currently chairs the Court’s Board on Continuing Legal Education, which administers New Jersey’s CLE program and assists in promulgating regulations, subject to the Court’s approval. He is the past chair of the Professional Responsibility Rules Committee, which considers and recommends attorney ethics rules to the Court. He is the past vice chair of the Civil Practice Committee, which performs a similar function with respect to the civil court rules.

Mr. Verniero annotates and provides commentary to theRules Governing the Courts of the State of New Jersey, a widely used reference guide for the legal profession published by Gann Law Books.

Mr. Verniero’s essays on legal and public policy issues also are widely published, appearing in such publications asThe Wall Street Journal,The New York Times,The Star-Ledger of Newark,The Philadelphia Inquirer andThe Investor’s Business Daily. In addition to writing essays, he is frequently quoted on legal topics in various media outlets.

He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards. After concluding his service on the Supreme Court, Mr. Verniero received the Medal of Honor, the highest award conferred by the New Jersey Bar Foundation. He also received the Gatekeeper Award in recognition of his “leadership in restoring public confidence in the law,” given by Common Good, a national bipartisan legal reform organization. He and his spouse have been honored by SAFE of Hunterdon in recognition of their efforts to end domestic violence.

As a former state Attorney General, Mr. Verniero is a member of the Society of Attorneys General Emeriti and frequently attends meetings of the National Association of Attorneys General. He has lectured on effective appellate advocacy at meetings of various entities, including county bar associations.

Mr. Verniero began his career as a Law Clerk to the Honorable Robert L. Clifford of the New Jersey Supreme Court. He also was an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the County College of Morris, where he taught business law.

Practices

  • Appellate
  • Corporate Investigations and Integrity
  • Class Action Litigation
  • E-Discovery/Technology
  • Litigation
  • White Collar
  • Health Care Government and Internal Investigations
  • Health Care Litigation

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Court Admissions

  • U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  • U.S. Supreme Court

Representative Decisions

Newsroom

In the News

Presentations

Publications

Rankings and Recognition

  • Selected for inclusion in:
  • Benchmark Litigation®* "Local Litigation Star" 2014-2026
  • The Best Lawyers in America®* 2007-2026, Appellate Practice (2007-2026), Bet-the-Company Litigation (2019-2026), Commercial Litigation (2013-2026), Corporate Compliance Law (2011-2026), Corporate Governance Law (2011-2026), Criminal Defense: White-Collar (2013-2026)
  • The Best Lawyers in America®* Newark "Lawyer of the Year" 2024, Appellate Practice
  • The Best Lawyers in America®* Newark "Lawyer of the Year" 2021, Corporate Compliance Law
  • Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business®* 2016-2025, New Jersey Litigation: General Commercial
  • New Jersey Super Lawyers®* 2009-2025, Appellate; Business Litigation; Criminal Defense: White Collar
  • ROI-NJ* "ROI Influencers: Power List" 2024-2025
  • NJBIZ®* "Leaders in Law" 2021
  • Inducted into the Hunterdon County Business Hall of Fame as a "Distinguished Leader" in 2017.
  • Received Medal of Honor from the New Jersey State Bar Foundation in 2016.
  • Received Community Service Award from SAFE in Hunterdon in 2014.
  • Received Public Service Recognition Award from Crime Stoppers of Hunterdon in 2013.
  • Received Leaders and Legends Award from the Newark YMCA in 2008.
  • Inducted into the Montville Twp. High School Hall of Fame as a Charter Member in 2001.
  • Received Alumni Achievement Award from Drew University in 1999.
  • Received Most Distinguished Citizen Award, presented by Clinton Twp. Mayor and Council, in 1999.
  • Received Defender of Justice Equal Protection Recognition Plaque in 1997.
  • Received Distinguished Service Award from the Peter W. Rodino, Jr. Law Society in 1994.

* See Award Methodology. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

Affiliations

  • Chair, New Jersey Supreme Court Board on Continuing Legal Education

  • Former Vice Chair, New Jersey Supreme Court Civil Practice Committee

  • Former Member, Governor’s Advisory Ethics Panel

  • Former Chair, Governor’s Judicial Advisory Panel

  • Co-Chair, NJ SAFE Task Force (2013)

  • Former Chair, New Jersey Supreme Court Professional Responsibility Rules Committee

  • Former Chair, New Jersey Ad Hoc Committee on Continuing Legal Education

  • Former Member, Board of Trustees, Legal Services of New Jersey

  • Fellow, American Bar Foundation

  • Member, Society of Attorneys General Emeriti

  • Member, American Bar Association

  • Member, New Jersey State Bar Association

  • Member, The Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey

  • Member, Hunterdon County Bar Association

  • Former Member, Board of Visitors, Drew University

  • Former Member, Board of Trustees, Hunterdon Healthcare System

  • Member, Panel of Evaluators, New Jersey Law Journal’s Attorney of the Year Award (2018)

  • Former Member, Editorial Board, New Jersey Law Journal

Education

  • J.D., Duke University School of Law (with honors )
  • B.A., Drew University (with highest honors, Phi Beta Kappa )

Bar Admissions

  • New Jersey
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