New Jersey Legal Resources

Overview of the New Jersey Court System

The New Jersey court system contains five different courts: municipal courts, tax courts, superior courts, the Superior Court Appellate Division, and the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

The municipal courts, which make up the bottom tier of the system, handle traffic violations, municipal ordinance violations, and minor criminal offenses. More serious criminal cases might start out in municipal courts but are often transferred to superior court.

The second tier consists of the superior courts and the tax courts. The superior courts handle both criminal and civil trials as well as domestic relations and juvenile cases. The tax courts exclusively handle tax issues.

The third tier is the Superior Court's Appellate Division. Decisions made in any of the lower courts may be appealed to this division, which may overturn or uphold the lower courts' decision.

Decisions made in the Appellate Division may be appealed to the New Jersey Supreme Court. In addition to handling the administration of the judiciary in New Jersey, the Supreme Court provides advisory opinions and lays down final rulings as the court of last resort in the state.

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