Author: Web Site Administrator

Effective Monday, March 23rd, the Union County Surrogate’s office located in the Union County Courthouse in Elizabeth will close to the public due to the COVID -19 public health emergency.

Any members of the public with inquiries can call the office at 908-527-4280, access the Surrogate’s website https://ucnj.org/surrogate/, email sbadri@ucnj.org or send a fax to 908-351-9212.

Anyone wishing to visit on non-essential matters will not be allowed access to public buildings, and we encourage our residents to use our website for any non-emergent, non-essential service they may require. Visitors for essential Social Services such as Food Stamps (SNAP), and emergency assistance will be allowed entry to the Division of Social Services Building at 342 Westminster Avenue in Elizabeth. For other essential services such as the County Clerk,  and the Surrogate offices in Elizabeth,  while their offices will be open, we encourage you to call ahead to make an appointment or see if you can conduct your business online first.

Effective immediately, the State of New Jersey is prohibiting gatherings larger than 50 people. Gyms will be closing at 8 PM and remain closed moving forward. Bars and Restaurants will be closing at 8 PM moving forward, with the ability to re-open each day to offer take-out and delivery services. Food establishments will be prohibited from offering eat-in services.                

Further information will be provided later today, including language on the upcoming Executive Orders.

Please immediately contact the Office of the Governor at 609-777-2500 to arrange for the return of this information.

In-person Superior Court proceedings scheduled for Monday, March 16 and Tuesday, March 17 will be postponed, Chief Justice Stuart Rabner announced Sunday night. During that time, the Judiciary will prepare to shift to virtual participation for attorneys, litigants and all court users, with extremely limited exceptions.

The postponements, detailed in a notice issued Sunday, are part of an ongoing series of actions taken in consultation with the New Jersey Department of Health to reduce the risk of public exposure to COVID-19 Coronavirus.

“On a typical court day, hundreds if not thousands of attorneys, litigants, and inmates appear in courts throughout the state. We are limiting physical interactions in our courts and shifting to video and phone conferencing options for attorneys, litigants and the public,” Chief Justice Rabner said.

Attorneys and litigants scheduled to appear for in-person matters at the trial level of the Superior Court and Tax Court on Monday and Tuesday should await notice of a new hearing date. Ongoing jury trials will continue as announced.

Critical court operations necessary to public safety or the administration of justice will continue. Emergent applications, as well as Extreme Risk Protective Orders and domestic violence temporary restraining orders submitted through local police departments, will continue to be accepted. The court also will continue to hold first appearance hearings and pretrial detention hearings.  

Questions about individual cases should be directed to the relevant court offices. Updated information regarding court operations will continue to be made available at njcourts.gov.

Residents invited to view hearing live on County Website

Please note: an earlier version of this press release referred to a YouTube broadcast. The broadcast will be available on Facebook Live instead, with a link on the County website. 

In light of the public health emergency caused by the spread of Covid-19, the County of Union has moved this Wednesday’s Fiscal Committee’s budget hearing—originally scheduled for Rahway—to the County Administration Building in Elizabeth, where it will start as planned at 6 p.m,  and will be broadcast through Facebook Live on the County’s website at ucnj.org.

The public is invited to view the hearing online, as the County Administration Building will be closed to visitors, due to concerns over the spread of the virus.  

 “We’re taking this action to safeguard the health of our residents and public employees,” said Freeholder Sergio Granados, who is the Fiscal Committee Chairman. “Measures like this serve to slow the spread, and can also potentially save lives by allowing the hospitals time and space to treat those who may have contracted Covid-19.”

Wednesday’s hearing is the last of three held by the Freeholder Board’s Fiscal Committee of the County’s budget. The Freeholder Board as a whole will vote to introduce the budget later this year. The County has worked diligently to stay below the 2% increase for the third year in a row, maintaining a stable tax rate, Granados noted.  

The County Counsel’s Office; the Department of Engineering and Public Works; the Department of Public Safety; and the Prosecutor’s Office will appear before the Fiscal Committee.