State of the Judiciary Address

Good morning everyone. Give me a sign with your hands, if this is too loud and too close as we go on.

Congratulations, Sue, on your installation last night. It was my honor to be able to swear you in and I thank your for asking me.

Chief Judge Brown, colleagues in the judiciary and in the Bar, thank you for inviting me to this impressive convention. This year’s program covers a broad array of topical subjects. The attendance has been brisk. I’m pleased to see not only so many attorneys and judges, but hundreds of law clerks for the second straight year.

The overall sense of excitement in the air bodes well for our legal community. I’m also pleased to be able to offer a report again on the state of our judiciary and have an opportunity to discuss some of the projects that our judiciary has been working on and look to the year ahead.

We took a careful look this past year at the state of mortgage foreclosure -– residential mortgage foreclosure filings in our court system. A number of facts led us to take combined administrative and judicial action some months ago.

The first was that foreclosure actions and filings in this state have been increasing at a staggering pace, tripling from more than 21,000 in 2006 to more than 65,000 this past year.

The second thing we observed is that the vast majority of these cases are uncontested. Ninety-four percent of foreclosure actions are not contested in any meaningful way, and as for the remaining six percent, many of those involve pro se parties because people who find themselves in that state are unable to afford an attorney.

That is meant that the courts, through the office of foreclosure, have been processing submissions often without any meaningful adversary process that could test them.

And the third fact is that the court has an obligation not only to the parties in a case, to the homeowners and to the lenders, but also an obligation to ensure the integrity of the judicial process overall. To make sure that judgments are entered based on valid, reliable documents that are filed with the court.

Against that backdrop we reviewed a report from Legal Services of New Jersey about court proceedings and hearings that took place in New Jersey, in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere that highlighted and raised questions about deficiencies in the foreclosure area, revealing instances of robo-signing that we’re now all too familiar with, improper notarizing of documents, and a host of other concerns.

In response, Judge Mary Jacobson ordered six large lenders implicated in irregularities to show why their foreclosure proceedings should not be suspended, and Judge Grant entered and administrative order directing 24 other lenders and servicers to demonstrate to a special master that there are no irregularities in their practices.

Today I am pleased to report that with the cooperation of lenders and loan servicers, the special masters are in the midst of actively overseeing both matters. Lenders and servicers are presenting proofs, right now, about their foreclosure proceedings which are under careful review.

In the end, our hope is that this review process will help ensure that foreclosure proceedings are based on accurate, reliable information and that they can proceed in our courts appropriately and smoothly. We also hope that this review will provide

greater confidence in the public at this time of crisis and ensure the integrity of the judicial process.

I want to thank the efforts and leadership of Judge Jacobson, Judges Williams and Barisonek, retired judges who are serving as special masters, the members of the Foreclosure Bar, and counsel for the lenders and servicers whose cooperative spirit to this challenge is certainly noteworthy and commendable.

While the process has been underway, we’ve recognized the need to manage our filings more efficiently. So for the past year, we began using the JEFIS system, the electronic filing system that is currently in use for special civil part cases for our foreclosure actions as well.

They are the foundation for not only electronic filing but for case management as well. It will be an increasingly important tool this coming year as we anticipate tens of thousands of additional foreclosure filings just in the coming months. That’s only one area, one of many ways that we’re using technology in our courts.

Let’s talk about some others. It’s now commonly accepted that people can pay parking tickets, can pay motor vehicle violations online. In the past year, drivers resolved 1.6 million tickets by using the court’s NJMC direct website and paid nearly $120 million in fines in that way.

Attorneys also can complete attorney registration forms. This past year, more than 28,000 lawyers did so online out of more than 80,000 overall.

I did it, and it was easy enough that I didn’t need to be rescued by computer savvy teenagers so I commend it to all of you as well.

Now I know that talk about paying fines and registering for your attorney registration and paying those fees don’t exactly bring joy to anyone’s hearts, but by streamlining the process, I hope we have made it easier to get through.

We’ve tried the same sensible approach to jury service. We ask a lot of our jurors, who give of their time as they serve the system of justice, and we’ve understood that many would prefer to communicate electronically with the court.

So this past year we introduced Juror Online Services, enabling residents to answer jury summonses on the court’s website at any time that is convenient to them. That information is transferred electronically and helps reduce storage costs for the 1.3 million records of summonses that go out each year.

And we’re working on better uses of technology in other areas as well to help the public and the Bar. For example, we took a look at the most common Madden assignments that attorneys are asked to take on. Those are: Defending domestic violence contempt cases, handling parole revocation hearings, and defending municipal court appeals.

We understand that many attorneys who are given these assignments don’t ordinarily handle them as part of their regular practice areas. So to assist the Bar, we created three working groups of judges, of staff, of practitioners who have completed manuals in each of these three areas which by all accounts are useful, are practical, and better still, are available online for ready access by our attorneys.

We’ve also redesigned the judiciary’s website, which is now more user friendly, adding a link for internet access to civil case information and creating an online self-help center for pro se litigants, among other changes.

That said, we need to do more in this area of technology. We need to use e-filing and electronic case management for more case types and more filings, and the rewards are obvious.

Greater convenience for attorneys in the filing of papers. No need for courier services and the costs associated with them for last minute filings which can be accomplished by the click of a mouse, and any number of greater efficiencies for the court system.

But in light of the large number of annual filings in our state courts, with 1.1 million new cases each year, the comprehensive e-filing system that we need will require a substantial overhaul, substantial changes in our computer network, and that in turn will require a stable funding source to start and maintain the project and I look forward to input and help from the Bar as we press forward with this issue this coming year.

As always, we’re mindful of the fiscal impact of projects such as that and I’d like to talk briefly with you about the state of the judiciary’s fiscal situation.

Our state, our nation are in the midst of very difficult economic times.

A few months ago the Chief -– excuse me, last month, the Chief Justice in Alabama announced that court offices statewide and courtrooms would be closed every Friday and that the amount of time dedicated to civil trials would be cut in half. She regretted the inevitable delays, the increase in backlog, the reduction in revenue collected by the courts that will surely follow, but explained that she had no alternative.

And just this past Wednesday, the New York Judiciary laid off more than 350 court employees with more layoffs planned.

In New Jersey in the past three years, the judiciary has been forced to deal with substantial budget shortfalls totaling more the $110 million. That’s already led to about 475 court employees being reduced through attrition, the deferral of IT expenditures, and a variety of other cost-saving measures.

And for the upcoming year, we anticipate an additional 25 million-dollar shortfall. Because our budget is based so heavily on salaries, we expect that we will have to lose an additional more than 60 employees to help make up that shortage through attrition.

That will bring to more than 500, the overall number of employees that we will have lost.

Now the judiciary recognizes that we must do our share at this difficult period in light of the state’s overall budget situation, but we’re also hopeful for an economic turnaround to allow us to avoid the crippling, long-term effects that future cuts would have on our ability to administer justice.

Now it’s because of the dedication of staff and judges in their handling of cases and their stewardship of our budget that we have been able to meet the needs, the growing demands, at a time of fewer resources.

Let’s look ahead to some projects that we’ll be working on with the Bar. State Bar President, Sue Feeney, last night outlined an array of pro bono projects that she and the Bar are planning. We are anxious to work together with you on them and wholeheartedly endorse the proposals that you outlined.

This fall, as you heard, marks an effort by the courts and the Bar to mark the anniversary – the tenth anniversary of 9/11. We will be coordinating not only with the State Bar, but with county and specialty bars to set aside space in courthouses throughout the state for members of the public to meet with attorneys who volunteer their time and offer legal advice.

I was also very pleased to hear you mention that a number of attorneys will be volunteering their time to help with wills and estate documents for first responders and for veterans. That dovetails nicely with the veterans initiative that has been ongoing in our court system now for 18 months where court staff identify veterans who enter the municipal and superior courts as criminal defendants, pair each defendant with a mentor, thanks to the New Jersey Department of Military and Veteran Affairs, and refer defendants to existing social services for addiction issues, mental health problems that sometimes can surface when veterans return from combat.

And for the past 18 months, as thousands of members of the New Jersey National Guard have returned from tours of duty overseas, what began as a pilot project in Atlantic and Union counties is now operational in 18 counties throughout the state and more than 750 referrals have been made statewide to date to assist veterans get help that they deserve and need.

The project success is a fitting tribute to our veterans and its accomplishments of many individuals and groups who have made it a reality are impressive.

As Chief Judge Brown said, we’ll also be working with the Bar and the federal courts on professionalism day this October. Our goal is to set aside two hours in the afternoon in courthouses throughout the state and provide an opportunity for the bench and bar to meet and talk about the importance of ethics and professionalism in seminars at each of these locations. Now the forum will not only provide a robust discussion of these issues, but also valued free CLE credits.

And on that subject, having completed the first year of CLE, we invite your comments, your suggestions, your criticism about the program as we continue to evaluate it and think about changes to be made.

And as always, your feedback shouldn’t just be limited to CLE. Judge Grant and I welcome your thoughts, your ideas about how we can improve the judicial system. On any topic, just send me or Judge Grant a letter, an email, and I assure you it will be read and reviewed.

Now much has been written about the challenges and successes of our court system this past year and no doubt much more will be written in the months that lie ahead.

If there were one piece that I’d like to see covered that goes to the heart of New Jersey’s judiciary’s reputation for excellence and innovation, it would be about the great strides that our family division has made on the problem of legal orphans.

Let me read to you parts of a recent letter in that regard sent by the president of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges to the commissioner in Washington, D.C. for the Administration on Children Youth and Families.

It says, and I’ll excerpt and read it in part, “Aging out of foster care without a legal connection to a family and often with no connection to a family at all, is the worse possible outcome for a child in foster care.

Can you imagine filling out a simple job application or an information sheet at a doctor’s office and having to answer none to the question asking for the name and address of your next of kin.

“In 2009,” the letter continues, “607 legal orphans aged out of foster care in Texas and hundreds more in Illinois and California. “Alternatively,” he writes, “the New Jersey courts took ownership of this issue and have shown that court attention will make a difference. We are committed to spreading that success, New Jersey success, to all children in all states.”

And then the letter goes on to lay out a series of steps and requests in that regard.

How did that happen? How did New Jersey become the model for the nation, singled out in a letter written just 10 weeks ago to one of the highest officials in the nation on the issue of children and families?

The letter writer was referring to the extraordinary reduction of legal orphans in the state and in Essex County in particular, which has dropped 75 percent since 2005. That’s thanks to the sustained effort and determination of staff and judges who started a pilot project in Essex in 2005 at a time when there were 1,200 legal orphans there.

A year ago, it turned into a statewide initiative and we’ve seen a dramatic reduction in the number of legal orphans and an equally dramatic increase in the number of adoptions.

In Essex County alone, 2,285 children have been adopted since this project’s began -- beginning.

The state of our judiciary is strong because of accomplishments like this, because of sustained and determined efforts at leadership by staff and judges, people like Judge Sallyanne Floria, who’s been overseeing that project in Essex, Judge Glenn Grant before her, and so many others.

People who try to focus on how to improve people’s lives and aren’t just working diligently through case files. And we’ve seen similar successes and innovative projects in every part of the court system. People hard at work trying to administer justice each and every day, with real results. That is an inspiring measure for our state’s judiciary and one that is worth thinking about.

One last word. Our judiciary is losing one of its leaders at the end of the summer, as Justice Rivera-Soto steps down after completing his seven-year term on the Supreme Court.

We will miss his powerful intellect, his prodigious work ethic, his personal warmth, and the exemplary commitment to serve the Bar and attorneys throughout the state that he’s demonstrated time and again throughout his career.

As members of the court said this past Tuesday at a ceremony in court right before the rules conference: “We know there are many more chapters to be written about your professional career and we know that they’ll be marked by the same excellence in industry, the same intelligence and dedication, and yes, the same passion that you are known for, which we’ve all witnessed up close these past seven years.”

Roberto, we wish you all the best.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the conference. Take opportunities and advantage of the courses and the chances to network and schmooze with one another, which all for the good.

And thank you very much for giving me a chance to speak with you again this morning everyone.