2435-14 Amending Chapter 2 Section 40 Entitled Municipal Court Established.pdf

3 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY Currently, Section 40 of Chapter 2 of the Revised General Ordinances of the Township of West Orange, entitled “Municipal Court Established,” contains multiple references to N.J.S.A. 2A:8-1 (the “Prior Statute”), which previously governed municipal courts in the State of New Jersey. The Prior Statute was repealed effective February 15, 1994, and was replaced with N.J.S.A. 2B:12-1, et seq. (the “Current Statute”). This Ordinance replaces all references to the Prior Statute with references to the Current Statute. In addition, Section 40.2 of Chapter 2 currently empowers the Mayor to designate one (1) of the Township’s Municipal Judges as “Presiding Judge.” State law, however, authorizes a municipality to designate a chief judge. N.J.S.A. 2B:12-8. The presiding judge of the municipal courts is a judge of the Superior Court or a municipal court appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey to preside over all municipal courts within the State. To avoid confusion and ensure consistency with state law, this Ordinance replaces the title “Presiding Judge” with “Chief Judge.” 4839-3203-4592, v. 1