New Jersey Supreme Court
| New Jersey Supreme Court | |||
 | |||
| Court information | |||
| Justices: | 7 | ||
| Founded: | 1776 | ||
| Location: | Trenton, New Jersey | ||
| Judicial selection | |||
| Method: | Gubernatorial appointment of judges | ||
| Term: | 7 years; until age 70 | ||
| Active justices | |||
|
Jaynee LaVecchia • Barry Albin • Helen Hoens • Stuart Rabner • Anne Patterson • Dorothea Wefing • | |||
| Former justices | |||
Contents |
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. One of its former members, William Brennan, Jr, also became an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Court currently sits in the state capitol of Trenton, New Jersey in the Richard J. Hughes Justice Complex.
Justices
The current justices of the court are:| Judge | Term | Appointed by | Party |
|---|---|---|---|
| Justice Jaynee LaVecchia | 2000-present | Independent | |
| Justice Barry Albin | 2002-2022 | Jon Corzine | |
| Justice Helen Hoens | 2006-2013 | Jon Corzine | |
| Chief Justice Stuart Rabner | 2007-2014 | Jon Corzine | |
| Justice Anne Patterson | 2011-2018 | Chris Christie | |
| Temporary Justice Dorothea Wefing | 1993-present | Chief Justice Stuart Rabner |
Chief justice
Stuart Rabner is the Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. He was appointed to the court in 2007 by Jon Corzine, a Democratic governor. Justice Rabner's current term expires in 2014.
Past chief justices
The following individuals have served as Chief Justice:
- 1779-1789: David Brearley[1]
- 1789-1803: James Kinsey[2]
- 1804-1825: Andrew Kirkpatrick
- 1824-1832: Charles Ewing[3]
- 1901-1933: William Stryker Gummere
- 1933-1946: Thomas Brogan
- 1946-1948: Clarence Case
- 1948-1957: Arthur Vanderbilt
- 1957-1973: Joseph Weintraub
- 1973-1973: Pierre Garven
- 1973-1979: Richard Hughes
- 1979-1996: Robert Wilentz
- 1996-2006: Deborah Poritz
- 2006-2007: James Zazzali
- 2007- : Stuart Rabner
Jurisdiction
The New Jersey Supreme Court has no original jurisdiction, instead, it is an appellate court.[4] The court may hear appeals if the case involves a constitutional question, if a judge in the Appellate Division dissented, if capital punishment is used, or the court granted "certification," or if the case involves redistricting, as described below.[4]
Political jurisdiction
If the New Jersey Redistricting Commission does not agree on the manner of redistricting Congressional districts in New Hampshire, the Supreme Court finalizes the decision.[4]
Judicial selection
The Court consists of seven justices, one of which is the court's Chief Justice.[4] Justices of the New Jersey Supreme Court are nominated by the Governor; one week after the public notice issued by the Governor, the nominees must pass the "advice and consent" of the state senate. After seven years of serving, the Governor can then determine whether to tenure the justice.[4] Justices are selected to complete the partisan balance; the Governor has the opportunity to appoint justices to have a one-seat advantage, but may go no further than that.[5]
Qualifications
According to section six of the New Jersey Constitution, "The justices of the Supreme Court and the judges of the Superior Court shall each prior to his appointment have been admitted to the practice of law in this State for at least 10 years."[6]
Removal of justices
To remove a judge, the court may notify the governor of "incapacitation," which then must be determined by a three person commission; a justice may also be impeached by the General Assembly and tried by the Senate.[4]
Caseloads
The Court Management Report for the period July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008 shows 1,147,870 cases were filed statewide in Superior Court, a 7 percent increase, or 76,799 cases more than the previous court year. During the same time, the courts achieved a 10 percent increase in cases resolved, from 1,054,261 to 1,156,385 cases in court year 2008. On June 30, the total number of pending cases was 225,857, including 199,965 cases in inventory and 25,892 cases in “backlog.”[7] The active caseload in January 2004 was 1266.
Salaries
The Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court earns $192,795 annually, while associate justices earn $185,482, as of January 2010.[8][9]
Notable decisions
History of the court
The state created a Constitution in 1776, which included the "Court of Appeals," the then court of last resort. The Supreme Court was mentioned, however, nothing was written on it other than seven year term limits for its justices.
After complaints of the prior Constitution of 1776, in 1844, the state created a new constitution, continuing the "non-supreme Supreme Court." The New Jersey Court of Errors and Appeals replaced the prior Court of Appeals.[10] The primary difference between this new court and the previous court is that judges were no longer legislators. Instead, the court became nonpartisan and did not intertwine with the other branches of government.
Notable firsts
See also
- New Jersey
- New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division
- New Jersey judicial news
- New Jersey blogs
- News: NJ Supreme Court fastracks pension lawsuit, November 28, 2011
- News: Seats shuffling on New Jersey Supreme Court, June 13, 2011
External links
- New Jersey Supreme Court Official Site
- Writs of Certification granted
- A graphical explanation of how the court fits into the system
- Jersey Judicial Network website
References
- ↑ The Founding Fathers: New Jersey - David Brearly, National Archives and Records Administration. Accessed November 27, 2007.
- ↑ James Kinsey, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed August 15, 2007.
- ↑ Manuscript Group 283, Ewing Family (Trenton, NJ), accessed January 9, 2007.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Wikisource, "New_Jersey_Constitution_of_1947"
- ↑ Article VI Section IV
- ↑ New Jersey Constitution
- ↑ New Jersey Judiciary
- ↑ The Sunshine Review, "New Jersey state government salary," January 8, 2012
- ↑ The National Center for State Courts, "Judicial Salary Resource Center" as of Jan. 1, 2010
- ↑ http://www.njstatelib.org/Research_Guides/Historical_Documents/nj/CON1844.TXT
Portions of this article have been taken from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Copyright Notice can be found here.
This State Supreme Courts and Justices article does not have an image. 
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|---|---|---|---|
| Current |
Jaynee LaVecchia • Barry Albin • Helen Hoens • Stuart Rabner • Anne Patterson • Dorothea Wefing • | ||
| Former | William Brennan • Virginia Long • John Wallace • Roberto Rivera-Soto • Mahlon Pitney • | ||
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