John Morelli
(Of Counsel)

Mr. Morelli concentrates his practice in the areas of litigation, commercial transactions and real estate transactions. He is an experienced trial attorney who has been actively appearing before juries since he was admitted to the bar in 1981. The Supreme Court has Certified Mr. Morelli as a Civil Trial Attorney, a distinction that less than 2% of attorneys achieve.

Mr. Morelli is a 1981 graduate of Rutgers University Law School. He holds a B.A. degree from LeMoyne College in Syracuse, New York. While an undergraduate, Mr. Morelli was a member of the Pi Gamma Mu National Honor Society. He graduated cum laude, with honors in his major in 1978.

He is admitted to practice in the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and California as well as the United States District Courts for New Jersey, the Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania, the Southern District of California, the United States Claims Court and the United States Supreme Court. He is a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association, the Camden County Bar Association the California Bar Association and the New Jersey Trial Lawyers Association. Mr. Morelli served as the Municipal Court Judge for the Waterford and Voorhees Townships, the Borough of Stratford and the Boroughs of Woodlynne and Collinsgwood from 1997 until 2018. Mr. Morelli has served as a member of the Municipal Court Practice Committees for the New Jersey State Bar Association and the Camden County Bar Association. He has authored an article on The History of the Municipal Courts which appeared in New Jersey Lawyer magazine as well as articles on Lincoln the Lawyer and book chapter in the upcoming New Jersey Municipal Court Practice Manual. Mr. Morelli has also been appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court to the District IV Ethics Committee and the Municipal Court Practice Committee. He served at the Vice Chair, then as Chair of the District IV Ethics Committee.

Mr. Morelli served as the City Attorney and Director of the Department of Law for the City of Trenton, New Jersey from 2018 until 2021. In addition to supervising the staff attorneys, Mr. Morelli was responsible for the management of all litigation matters, all urban redevelopment projects as well as the drafting of all resolutions and ordinances on behalf of the City. He served as the chief legal advisor to both the Mayor and City Council.

As City Attorney, Mr. Morelli was responsible for the drafting of a comprehensive zoning ordinance for medical marijuana facilities in the City of Trenton. He has negotiated redevelopment and land use agreements involving some of the largest national marijuana companies. Mr. Morelli also drafted a comprehensive regulatory plan for the marijuana industry within the City of Trenton which has served as a model ordinance for other municipalities within the State as well as throughout the country.