New Jersey was the third state to join the Union on December 18, 1787. It has the highest population density in the U.S. at 13 times the national average with a population of 8.7 million residents in 8,721 square miles. New Jersey is the 47th in territory size and 11 in populous. There are 21 counties and 566 cities, boroughs, towns, townships and villages. New Jersey counties are an extension of the state government and deal with municipal and local issues. Counties elect their own officials, pass ordinances, operate agencies and local affairs. County departments include sheriffs office, clerks, prosecutors, councils, commissions, authorities and boards.
The state passed Open Public Records Act (OPRA) to give residents of New Jersey a transparent government. The open record laws apply to all state and local agencies where any one in New Jersey can request information held by the government. Exceptions to New Jersey law is clearly outlined placing the discretion of what is considered confidential information with the courts as opposed to solely with the agency officials. The statutes have been amended in recent years to accommodate the new operation of electronic equipment and databases.
Just as there are requests for public information from their governments and agencies for purposes of oversight, other requests are made for business and personal reasons on a regular basis. Businesses that conduct background checks can require a criminal history check and a condition to hiring. The New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety offers criminal history record checks from the state police. Look up official police criminal searches and obtain felony and misdemeanor information and see what others can find about you. Background checks can be expanded to uncover other information about an individual in New Jersey. Drivers records can be obtained from the state motor vehicle commission showing license status, violation history, event type, numerical points and more. Link to the New Jersey judicial website and find out how to obtain court records. Look up divorces, judgments, lawsuits filed and current upcoming cases on calendar. New Jersey bankruptcy filings can be accessed with the PACER system. Verification of state issued licenses to professionals in New Jersey can be searched by linking to the division of consumer affairs online database. Look up licenses by name, profession or business.
Searching for New Jersey assets such as real estate and business ownerships are public records. A free assessment records search on public record center will reveal real property ownership, land details and assessed value. Find businesses ownerships under name of the person or company. The New Jersey business gateway service provides information of corporations, other business entity filings and UCC debtor records.
Refer to a list of the best found sources that can help anyone looking for information and documents. Public record portals can list the most current and up to date sites found to obtain official certificates of births, deaths and marriages occurring in New Jersey. Conduct an instant research of registered offenders, inmates and the most wanted lists online. Find out where to obtain single records without the need of a complete background search. Use a directory with a clearly outlined description of New Jersey state and local agency sites. Valuable information and “how to” help from official sources with forms, instructions for use by anyone of the general public.
