NOTICE TO THE BERGEN COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION

MARCH 18, 2020

The Bergen County Judiciary, in conjunction with the New Jersey Judiciary, is continuing to take preventive measures to reduce risks of exposure to and transmission of the COVID-19 coronavirus.  As of March 18, 2020, and until further notice, there shall be NO in-person Superior Court proceedings (except for extremely limited emergent matters as set forth in the March 15, 2020, Notice to the Bar attached).

The Bergen Judiciary shall attempt to handle as many matters as possible (including case management conferences, motions, and hearings) by telephone or video conference, whether from the courthouse or remotely in the days and weeks ahead.  This is all part of the Judiciary’s social distancing effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus.

In order to conduct conferences via video we shall be using the Zoom Platform.  To prepare, I urge that you download the application on your devices.

In the meantime, the situation is fluid and we continue to plan for further adjustments.  At the time of this writing the Bergen Judiciary has implemented the following changes: Read More

The deadline has been extended for filing an application for certification for examinations given in 2020. The extended deadline is May 29, 2020 by postmark or hand delivery for submitting a completed application for Civil Trial Certification, Criminal Trial Certification, Matrimonial Law Certification, Workers’ Compensation Law Certification, and Municipal Court Law Certification. Applications are available from the Board’s website at:

https://www.njcourts.gov/attorneys/attres.html

 

Supreme Court of New Jersey

Board on Attorney Certification

PO Box 965

Trenton, NJ 08625-0965

(605) 815-2930

Clerk of the Supreme Court

Dated: March 18, 2020

SUPREME COURT OF NEW JERSEY

WHEREAS, a national emergency has been declared and the Governor of New Jersey has declared a State of Emergency and Public Health Emergency and has recommended the cancellation of mass gatherings throughout the State in response to the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus; and

WHEREAS, the New Jersey Department of Health (“NJ DOH”), Centers for Disease Prevention (“CDC”), and other public health authorities have advised public and private agencies to promptly take necessary precautions to reduce exposure to and transmission of COVID-19 and slow the spread the disease; and

WHEREAS, in consultation with the New Jersey Department of Health, the Judiciary postponed non-emergent court proceedings effective March 16, 2020, as the court system prepares to provide services through video and phone conferencing rather than in-person;

IT IS ORDERED that, effective immediately and until further order, pursuant to N.J. Const., Art VI, sec. 2, par. 3:

  1. In Civil matters, the provisions of Rules 4:24-1(a), 4:24-1(c), 4:46-1, and 4:36-3 are relaxed and supplemented to permit the extension of discovery deadlines; and
  2. In Family matters, the provisions of Rule 5:5-1(e) are relaxed and supplemented to permit the extension of discovery deadlines; and
  3. In the computation of time periods under the Rules of Court and under any statute of limitations for matters in all courts, for purposes of filing deadlines, March 16 through March 27, 2020 shall be deemed the same as a legal holiday,

 

For the Court,

/s/ Stuart Rabner

Chief Justice

Dated: March 17, 2020

Consistent with the March 9, 2020 notice, the Judiciary is continuing take preventive measures to reduce risks of exposure to and transmission of the COVID-19 coronavirus. In conjunction with those precautionary efforts, we are implementing the following immediate changes to our business operations and planning for potential further adjustments in the coming days and weeks.

1. We are making changes to jury management and operations. Read More

Pursuant to Regulation 201:8 (“Alternative Verifiable Learning Formats”), the Board on Continuing Legal Education requires that attorneys complete twelve credit hours in the form of live classroom instruction for each two-year compliance period for continuing legal education. In response to the growing public health crisis worldwide and in New Jersey, the New Jersey Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recommended social distancing to try to minimize exposure to and transmission of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

It is therefore, for good cause shown, ORDERED that effective immediately and until further order of the Court, the live classroom instruction requirement is relaxed. Until further notice, all twenty-four credit hours for the compliance period may be fulfilled through approved courses offered in alternative verifiable learning formats.

For the Court,

/s/ Stuart Rabner

Chief justice

Dated: March 10, 2020