Although it has one of the greatest populations in the country, New Jersey's court system is actually structured quite simply. The New Jersey court system includes superior courts, appellate courts, municipal courts, tax court and the Supreme Court.

About New Jersey Courts

If you are interested in finding New Jersey court records, it is best that you have a solid understanding of the way the court system in this state actually works. Finding court records can often prove to be somewhat tiresome task. You can save yourself a great deal of frustration by acquiring a little knowledge. If you know how the system works, you will know exactly where to go and who to talk to in order to get your hands on the New Jersey court records that you need.

The first thing that you need to know is that the trial court system in New Jersey is made of municipal courts, tax courts and superior courts. All kinds of criminal and civil cases are heard by the superior courts; however, they typically only hear cases that go beyond the jurisdiction of the other courts in the state.

In addition, the majority of superior courts in New Jersey also have a number of special divisions that hear specific case types. These special divisions may include:

·         The Civil Division of the superior courts in New Jersey hears disputes over compensation from a defendant in amounts greater than $15,000. The Special Civil Part of this division hears civil cases ranging in value from $3,000 to $15,000, in addition to small claims cases under $3,000.

·         The Criminal Division of the superior courts includes drug courts that deal with non-violent drug offenders, working to foster rehabilitation and reduce crime.

·         The Municipal Division generally hears a number of criminal cases, such as municipal ordinance violations, preliminary felony hearings and crime that are punishable by under a year of imprisonment.

·         The Family Division typically has exclusive authority over domestic relations cases involving non-criminal child abuse and neglect.

In most instances, you will be able to find the New Jersey court records that you need on file with the superior courts in the state; however, for specific cases, you may need to visit the other courts in the state, such as tax court, the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court.

 How to Obtain New Jersey Court Records

Under New Jersey Court Rule 1.38, the public has the right to view any records created, maintained or stored by the court, with a few exceptions. For example, you may not gain access to jury questionnaires, court records related to cases of sexual abuse involving children, civil commitment records, search warrants, most records kept by the family division of the superior court system, or records pertaining to grand jury proceedings.

You can obtain access to most New Jersey court records by going through the administrative office of the superior court division, the family division, the criminal division and the municipal division. All of these courts keep records that are available for evaluation by the public.

• New Jersey State Court Districts

• New Jersey State Legislature