Find municipal court contact information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Requesting Court Accommodations
Requesting Interpreter
The court will provide an interpreter at no cost for court events if a defendant or witness has limited ability to understand or communicate proficiently in English. Contact the local municipal court.
¿Necesita un intérprete? Llame al juzgado municipal.
You have the right to an interpreter in court/Usted tiene derecho a un intérprete en el Juzgado Municipal.
Requesting Court Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accommodations
If you need an ADA accommodation, contact the municipal court for accommodations at no cost.
Traffic and Parking Tickets
NJMC Direct Ticket System
Use the Traffic Ticket System to:
- Find a traffic or parking ticket.
- Pay fines or time payments.
- Plead not guilty to a traffic or parking ticket.
- Request a different court date.
Find a ticket
To find a ticket in the system, you will need:
- The court ID number,
- the ticket number, and
- your license number.
The system can tell you the violation number, the court date, and the name of the court.
If you do not have the ticket, you can call the municipal court in the city or town where you got the ticket. If you do not know where the ticket was written, you can call 609-421-6100 .
Court staff can help you find your ticket using your driver’s license number.
Pay a ticket
If the ticket does not require a court appearance, you can go to NJMCDirect.com and pay the fine with a credit card. You may also call the court to arrange to pay by check or cash directly at the court. You can look up the amount due on theViolations Bureau Schedule. If you pay the fine, that means you are pleading guilty to the violation.
Plead not guilty
If you want to plead not guilty to the violation, check the box. After indicating you want to plead not guilty, for some less serious offenses, youcan complete a Plea by Mail form and upload it onJudiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS). For some less serious offenses you can also plead not guilty in the Municipal Case Resolution system, accessed via NJMCDirect.com. The prosecutor may reach out to you to discuss a possible plea deal. The judge will hear the case on your scheduled court date.
Request a different court date
You can ask for a different court date if you cannot attend on the assigned date. Court staff will send a new court date using your provided contact information.
Other Municipal Complaints
NJMC Direct Municipal Complaints
Use the Municipal Complaint System to:
- Find your non-traffic or parking municipal court case.
- Pay fines or time payments.
- Plead non-guilty to a municipal court case.
- Request a different court date.
Find your municipal court case
Enter the case information from the complaint to find your case in the system.
The system will tell you the violation and the court date. You must appear in court.
Make time payments
At the time of a guilty plea or verdict, financial obligations are expected to be paid in full. However, if you cannot pay in full today you may pay in installments or seek other relief from the court.
Plead not guilty
If you want to plead not guilty to the violation, check the box. After indicating you want to plead not guilty, you should complete a Plea by Mail form and upload it on Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS). You can go to the municipal court on your scheduled date to have your case heard by a judge.
Request a different court date
You can ask for a different court date if you cannot attend on the assigned date. If the court approves the request, court staff will send a new court date using your provided contact information.
Preparing for Municipal Court Appearance
Many traffic, and parking tickets and other minor offenses may be are resolved without going to court. However, certainmunicipal cases require a court appearance.
Preparing for Your Day in Court
Watch this video before your court date so that you know what you need to do in court.
The video is also available in:
Watch this video for tips on how to participate in a remote court event.
How to Get a Public Defender
You might be entitled to a public defender for your court case. That depends on the nature of your charge and whether you qualify under income guidelines. You can contact the municipal court for an application form.
What to Expect in Court
You can look up the contact information for your court.
When you come to court:
- Turn off or silence your phone of any other personal devices.
- Check in with court staff when you arrive at court.
- Listen to instructions from court staff and the judge.
- Remain quiet until your time to speak. Proceedings are sound recorded.
- The judge will give an opening statement explaining court proceedings, defendants’ rights and penalties.
- Cases are usually called in the following order:
- Requests for postponement.
- Uncontested motions.
- First arraignments.
- Guilty pleas.
- Contested motions.
- Pleas of not guilty with an attorney.
- Pleas of not guilty without an attorney.
- A case might be postponed so you can obtain an attorney and prepare your defense.
- In some courts, your case may go to mediationif the judge orders itand it involves a dispute with another person.
Pleading Guilty or Not Guilty and Plea Agreements
Once your case is called, you can enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. You might also be able to work on a plea agreementwith the prosecutorbefore your case is called.
A plea agreement is when the prosecution agrees to lower charges, reduce fines, or reduce sentencing in exchange for a guilty plea. The judge retains the right to refuse a plea agreement.
If you plead guilty, the judge will:
- Ask questions to ensure the facts align with your guilty plea.
- Ensure you are entering the plea voluntarilywith full knowledge.
- Make a finding and impose a sentence.
You will then have to abide by the sentence.
You may be able to plea onlinewithout a court appearance.
Municipal Court Trial
If you plead not guilty, your case moves to trial. The trial could take place that day or another scheduled date. Municipal cases do not have a jury.
The judge decides guilty or not guilty. If guilty, the judge will also impose a sentence. You will receive instructions on how to comply with your sentence.
Whether you plead guilty or are found guilty, you will have to abide by the court’s judgment. This could include fines, restitution, or even jail time in some offenses.
Failure to appear in court, not paying fines, or not complying with other sentencing may result in:
- Additional fines.
- Suspension of driver’s license.
- Arrest and jail time.
Note: You are entitled to an installment (time payment) plan if you cannot pay in full on the day of sentencing or within 30 days. If you later cannot comply with that time payment, you can contact the court – you may be entitled to a modification of your payment plan or other relief from the judge.
Appeals
You can appeal the judge’s decision within 20 days. Visit our municipal court appeals self-help page for more information.
