An Overview of Court Process A Walk Through the Judicial Process Supreme Court Appellate Division Local Courts Tax Court Municipal Courts 2008-2009 Annual Report of the NJ Judiciary (PDF) 2007-2008 Annual Report of the NJ Judiciary (PDF) 2005-2006 Annual Report of the NJ Judiciary (PDF)

Courts are the most visible part of our legal system. Though many legal issues and disputes are never brought to the courthouse, each year approximately seven million new cases are filed in New Jersey's courts. In those cases, judges are called upon to decide disputes involving such diverse topics as criminal law, motor vehicle violations, divorce, and other family matters, wills, contracts, defective products, and of course our basic rights as Americans, such as freedom of speech. People set the agenda for New Jersey Courts through these cases, and it is through these cases that courts influence our lives.

The structure of New Jersey's court system is among the simplest in the nation. There are only a few basic types of courts in the state. Municipal courts, Tax Court, state Superior Court, which includes the trial courts, an Appellate Division and the New Jersey Supreme Court. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey is Stuart Rabner.