Raymond Arthur Abbott, a Minor, by His Guardian Ad Litem, Frances Abbott; Arlene Figueroa, Frances Figueroa, Hector…

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the State’s underfunding of the School Funding Reform Act (SFRA) for fiscal year 2011 breached the conditions of its earlier relief in Abbott XX and therefore ordered full funding of SFRA for the Abbott districts in FY 2012 and a look‑back analysis. The Court rejected the State’s claim that the Appropriations Clause bars judicial enforcement of constitutional education obligations and limited the remedy to the plaintiff class of Abbott district children. Separate dissenting opinions argued that the three‑vote majority was procedurally improper and that the relief exceeded the Court’s authority; a concurring opinion agreed with the majority’s result but urged broader relief for all at‑risk districts.