A New Jersey appeals court has reinstated a legal malpractice suit after finding a Hudson County judge’s failure to grant the plaintiffs’ request for an extension of the discovery deadline was an abuse of discretion.

The appeals court ruled Thursday that Hudson County Civil Presiding Judge Joseph Turula wrongly denied a motion to extend discovery because he failed to conduct the required analysis of the issue and gave only “fleeting comments” to justify his decision. Another Hudson County judge, Anthony D’Elia, then followed up by improperly dismissing the complaint with prejudice without making findings of fact and conclusions of law, acting based solely on the court’s Best Practices deadlines, the appeals court said.