Is New Jersey's judicial vacancy crisis under control? Trenton lawmakers hear testimony
The acting Administrative Director of the New Jersey Courts told members of the state Assembly Budget Committee that a robust judiciary is essential.
Still less than a month on the job, Michael Blee spoke about the importance of an impartial court system, noting the 'judiciary must uphold the law and protect the rights of all individuals so that justice can be served.'
State Sen. Paul Sarlo, the committee's chair and a Bergen County Democrat, called the state's system the 'best in the country.'
'We should be very proud of it," Sarlo said. "The process we go through to select our judges — and then the interaction we have with them afterward, the work we do together.'
When asked by state Sen. Mike Testa, R-Vineland, about vacancies stemming from a lack of nominations from the governor's office, Blee said he didn't 'know what the impetus is' but that 'it is a very stringent vetting process,' which is a good thing.
Blee said that as of May 1 there will be 51 vacancies, which is 'not at the crisis level' from several years ago, when the New Jersey courts had as many as 76 judicial vacancies.
He said that they would like to see that number in the range of 25 to 30 vacancies.
There is a possibility of shutting down matrimonial or civil trials in Vicinage 13, which covers Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren counties if there are five or six vacancies, though. They will stand at three next week.
More: NJ lawmakers question school funding formula, federal aid in Trenton budget hearing
Civil and matrimonial trials in Passaic, Cumberland, Gloucester, Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren counties have been suspended in recent years due to vacancies.
A slew of judges were confirmed at the end of 2023 and in early 2024 to bring the number of vacancies on the bench to 38, the lowest since before the pandemic.
In New Jersey, judges serve for an initial seven-year term and can be renominated for tenure, which allows them to sit on the bench until they reach the mandatory retirement age of 70.
Blee also highlighted the efforts made to lower the backlog of cases to something closer to what it was before the pandemic. Blee said that in the past fiscal year, the backlog of cases is down to 21%, an increase of nearly 12%.
The backlog stood at 41,433 in February, according to the courts website, a substantial decrease from the 75,777 cases waiting to be heard in February 2023.
'This is an improvement, but it falls short of our present goal,' Blee said. 'We look forward to continuing to work with the Legislature to fill judicial vacancies, which will help us reduce that backlog and provide timely justice for all.'
Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ judicial vacancy crisis is coming under control
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