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ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF THE COURTS
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
PHILIP S. CARCHMAN, J.A.D. R
ICHARD
J. H
UGHES
J
USTICE
C
OMPLEX
A
CTING
A
DMINISTRATIVE
D
IRECTOR OF THE
C
OURTS
P.O. Box 037
T
RENTON
, N
EW
J
ERSEY
08625-0037
[Questions or comments may be addressed
to [phone]]
[Directive #15-05]
MEMORANDUM
TO: Assignment Judges
Civil, Criminal, Family, General Equity and
Municipal Presiding Judges
Trial Court Administrators
Civil, Criminal, Family, and Municipal Division Managers
FROM: Philip S. Carchman, J.A.D.
SUBJECT: Judiciary Open Records: Policies and Procedures for Access to Case-
Related Court Records - Staff Guidelines
DATE: November 4, 2005
Attached is a policy document entitled the New Jersey Judiciary Open Records:
Policies and Procedures for Access to Case-Related Court Records - Staff Guidelines, as
approved by the Supreme Court on October 12, 2005. These Guidelines provide a
workable framework for the uniform processing of requests for access to and copying of
publicly disclosable Judiciary records throughout the state. The Guidelines are applicable
to case-related records in the Superior Court and the Municipal Courts.
Copies of these Guidelines should be distributed to individuals responsible for
responding to requests for court records, and should be made available to the public on
request.
These statewide procedures for the consistent handling of public requests are not
intended to change the substance of Rule 1:38, which specifies which Judiciary records
must be made available to the public and which are not. There is, however, a consensus
that there is a need to define with greater precision what is and should be producible and
what is not. In the near future, therefore, a process will be established for conducting a
comprehensive review of Rule 1:38.
These procedures provide staff with a consistent approach to handling requests
from the public for disclosable case-related court records. Highlights of the Staff
Guidelines are as follows:

Directive #15-05
November 4, 2005
Page 2
1. Openness Principle. The Guidelines recognize the basic principle that, in the
interest of an open and transparent court system, all case-related court records are
open to public inspection unless there is a specific statute or court rule that
exempts them. As stated in the Guidelines, “These procedures have been
established to further the Judiciary’s open records policy, assure consistent and
uniform response by court staff throughout the state, and eliminate artificial
barriers that delay or complicate access by the public.” The statutory or rule
authority for exempting specific records from disclosure is noted in the
Guidelines.
2. Form Required for all Requests. Whenever a record is requested, either for
copies or for inspection, the requestor should be asked to fill out a form indicating
the record(s) being requested. Separate request forms have been developed for
the Civil (including Special Civil and General Equity), Criminal, and Family
Divisions of the Superior Court and for Municipal Court. The records request