Associate Justice Rachel Wainer Apter

Justice Rachel Wainer Apter was nominated by Gov. Phil Murphy and was sworn in as an associate justice on Oct. 21, 2022.

Born on July 22, 1980, Justice Wainer Apter grew up in Rockaway. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and received her law degree from Harvard Law School. After law school, she served as a law clerk for U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff, U.S. Circuit Judge Robert Katzmann, and U.S Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. 

At the time of her appointment, Justice Wainer Apter was serving as director of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights. She previously served as counsel to the New Jersey Attorney General and assistant attorney general. 

Before joining the Attorney General’s Office, Justice Wainer Apter worked as a senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and in the Supreme Court and Appellate practice at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe.

Justice Wainer Apter and her husband have three children.