Township of Hampton, NJ Chapter 8 Court, Joint Municipal

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Hampton 7-31-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-3.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]

[1] Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Ch. 8, Court, Intermunicipal, adopted 12-29-1981, as amended.

§ 8-1 Creation of court; name; jurisdiction.

A. Creation of court. There is hereby created a joint municipal court consisting of the following members: the Township of Green, Borough of Andover, Township of Fredon and Township of Hampton, all located in Sussex County. The court is created pursuant to the Interlocal Services Agreement between the aforesaid municipalities and is subject to the terms thereof.

B. Name of court. The name of the joint municipal court shall be the "The Joint Municipal Court of the Townships of Green, Fredon, Hampton and the Borough of Andover."

C. Effective date. The effective date for the creation of the Municipal Court of the Townships of Green, Fredon, Hampton and the Borough of Andover shall be August 1, 2007.

D. Jurisdiction. The jurisdiction of the joint municipal court shall be coextensive with the territories of the Township of Green, the Township of Fredon, the Borough of Andover and the Township of Hampton.

E. Location of the court. The joint court shall sit in the Township of Green or at such other place or places as hereafter may be designated by ordinance or resolution adopted by all participating municipalities.

§ 8-2 Municipal judge: powers, duties and qualifications.

A. There shall be a municipal judge appointed as provided by law in the case of a joint municipal court. The Municipal Judge shall serve for a term of three years from the date of appointment and until the successor shall be appointed and qualified. He/she shall be a resident of the State of New Jersey and admitted to practice law in the State of New Jersey for at least five years. Any appointment to fill a vacancy not caused by the expiration of term shall be made for the unexpired term.

B. The Municipal Judge shall have and possess the qualifications and shall have, possess and exercise all the functions, duties, powers and jurisdiction conferred by law or ordinance. He/she shall be an attorney-at-law of the State of New Jersey. Whenever the Municipal Judge is unable to sit as such, he/she may designate any other judge of any municipal court to sit for him/her temporarily and hold the Municipal Court. Any such designation shall be in writing and filed with the court, and any person so designated, while sitting temporarily, shall possess all the powers of the Municipal Judge.

C. The Municipal Judge shall faithfully carry out all of the duties and responsibilities of a Municipal Judge and shall abide by all rules and regulations established for municipal court judges by the Administrative Office of the Courts.

D. The Municipal Court Judge shall have full management authority of Court operations excluding the hiring and termination of all Court personnel.

§ 8-3 Prosecutor; Administrator; Public Defender, other personnel.

A. Municipal Prosecutor. There shall be a Municipal Prosecutor of the Municipal Court who shall prosecute cases in the Municipal Court, except each member at its discretion, may appoint its own prosecutor for municipal or Board of Health ordinance violation cases at the sole cost of that member. The Municipal Prosecutor shall be appointed for a one-year term by the Township of Green with the consent and approval of the Joint Court Committee. The compensation of the Municipal Prosecutor shall be determined by the Township of Green with the consent and approval of the Joint Court Committee.

B. Municipal Court Administrator. Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2B:12-10 et seq., there shall be an Administrator of the Municipal Court who shall perform the functions and duties prescribed for the Administrator by law, by the rules applicable to municipal courts and by the Municipal Judge. The Administrator shall be appointed by the Township of Green with consent and approval of the Joint Court Committee for a term of one year, subject however, to the tenure provisions as set forth in New Jersey Statute 2A:8-13.3[1] and considered an employee of the Township of Green. The compensation of the Administrator shall be determined by the Township of Green with the consent and approval of the Joint Court Committee. The Administrator shall have the authority granted by law and the Rules of Court to administrators and clerks of Courts of Record as set forth in Article 3 of the Interlocal Agreement.

[1] Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 2B:12-10.

C. Public Defender. There shall be a Municipal Public Defender who shall represent those defendants assigned by the Municipal Court Judge. The Municipal Public Defender shall be appointed for a one-year term by the Township of Green with the consent and approval of the Joint Court. The compensation of the Public Defender shall be determined by the Township of Green with the consent and approval of the Joint Court Committee.

(1) Any person applying to the Municipal Court of the Townships of Green, Fredon, Hampton and the Borough of Andover for representation by a Municipal Public Defender shall, in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 2B:12-28, pay an application fee of up to $200 as may be determined by the Municipal Court Judge. The Municipal Court Judge may waive said application fee in whole or in part if the Court determines, in its discretion, that the application fee represents an unreasonable burden on the person seeking representation.

§ 8-4 Interlocal Services Act.

The governing bodies of the Township of Green, Township of Fredon, Borough of Andover and Township of Hampton are hereby authorized to enter into contract with each other embodying the provisions pursuant to the Interlocal Services Act, N.J.S.A. 40:8A-1 et seq., in accordance with the term of that Act. In the event of any discrepancy between this chapter and said Interlocal Services Act and any amendments thereto, the Act shall take precedence.