The appearance of impropriety standard governs the evaluation of a municipal attorney’s conflict of interest. The City Council’s decision is set aside because it was tainted by its attorney’s conflict of interest. In these unusual circumstances, to balance the rights of the parties and recognize the proper roles of the relevant decision-making bodies, the Court remands this matter to the Law Division for a de novo review of the Zoning Board’s resolution, and directs the court to entertain the City Council’s arguments or supplements to the record that bear upon its own expertise and knowledge of the zoning scheme and give due consideration to the City Council’s evaluation of the proposed use variances. 6-26-13
