New Jersey’s massive American Dream mall is facing a lawsuit after allegedly breaking a county’s long-standing law: It isn’t allowed to sell clothes on Sunday.
The lawsuit, filed in Bergen County Superior Court on Monday, alleged that the 120 retail stores in the sprawling East Rutherford retail and entertainment complex are in violation of Bergen County’s “blue laws,” according to NJ.com.
Blue laws restrict or prohibit certain activities, like the sale of non-essential goods on Sundays.
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“These businesses with the encouragement and support of the mall’s ownership and the acquiescence of the other defendants here, have violated the law hundreds if not thousands of times since January,” the suit read.
The lawsuit was filed against Ameream, the Delaware LLC that owns the mall.
Blue laws trace back to the 1600s and were modeled after English Sabbath laws to promote a day of rest.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it is constitutional for states to create laws requiring a day of rest. However, by the 20th century, these laws had lost much of their importance. Many were either repealed or simply ignored in different parts of the country, according to EBSCO databases.
New Jersey remains one of the few states that still enforces blue laws in specific areas. Bergen County voters rejected efforts to end the Sunday shopping ban in 1980 and again in 1993, according to the town of Wyckoff.
FOX Business reached out to the American Dream mall for comment.
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The borough of East Rutherford and the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA), which owns and leases property to the mall, are also being sued.
A spokesperson for American Dream said in a statement to NJ.com that the suit was “a meritless political stunt driven by private competitors’ interests.”
“It is well established that Bergen County’s Blue Laws do not apply to property owned by the state — American Dream is on state property where retail sales have occurred on Sundays for decades. We look forward to our day in court,” the spokesperson said.
FOX Business reached out to East Rutherford town officials and NJSEA for comment.
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