N.J. Stat. tit. 47, ch. 1

in effect

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-1 § 47:1-1

All clerks, registers of deeds and mortgages and other officers who are required by law to receive and record deeds, mortgages, bills of sale and other conveyances, or who are required by law to enter, file or record judgments, decrees, mechanics' lien claims, attachments, recognizances, sheriffs' bonds or other liens and encumbrances on real estate in this state, shall, in addition to the entry and record thereof required by law, keep an exact record of the hour and minute, when the same shall be filed, entered or recorded in their respective offices, and such entry, filing or recording shall take effect and be notice thereof from and as of the exact time of the actual entry, filing or recording of the same.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-2 § 47:1-2

No instrument in writing, with or without an acknowledgment, proof, affidavit or certificate attached thereto, required by law to be recorded or filed in the office of any county clerk or register of deeds and mortgages, shall be received for record or filing in any of such offices, unless such instrument, acknowledgment, proof, affidavit or certificate is written or printed in the English language.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-3 § 47:1-3

For the purpose of recording, rerecording, recopying or transcribing any or all papers, documents and instruments in writing in the offices of the county clerks and registers of deeds and mortgages and surrogates of any county of this state, loose leaf record books may be used, if, immediately upon the completion of any such book for record purposes, the leaves thereof shall be securely and permanently bound and fastened together; and all recordings, rerecordings, recopyings or transcriptions made in any of such offices prior to March twenty-fifth, one thousand nine hundred and thirteen, in loose leaf record books, the leaves whereof shall be securely and permanently bound and fastened together, shall have the same legal force, meaning and effect as if made in record books having the leaves bound therein.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-4 § 47:1-4

All papers, documents and instruments in writing authorized or required by law to be recorded in the office of the clerk, registers of deeds and mortgages or surrogate of any county of this state, as well as the record of such papers, documents or instruments in writing, which may be recopied, rerecorded or transcribed pursuant to any law of this state, may be copied, recorded, recopied, rerecorded or transcribed in such offices in typewriting, and such record, rerecord or transcribing made in typewriting shall have the same legal force, meaning and effect as if made in handwriting; and the record of any such papers, documents and instruments in writing, or the recopying, rerecording or transcribing thereof made prior to March eighth, one thousand nine hundred and twelve, in any of such offices in typewriting shall have the same legal force, meaning and effect as if such record, rerecord or transcribing had been made in handwriting.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-5 Photographic, data records in certain offices; effect as evidence

47:1-5. All papers, documents and instruments in writing authorized or required by law to be recorded, filed, registered, or indexed in the office of the Secretary of State, clerk, register of deeds and mortgages and surrogate of any county of this State, as well as the record and index of any such papers, documents or instruments in writing, which may be recopied, rerecorded or transcribed pursuant to any law of this State, may be recopied, rerecorded, reindexed or transcribed in such offices by means of photography, data processing or image processing, and such rerecord or transcribing, made by means of photography, data processing or image processing, shall have the same legal force, meaning and effect as if made in handwriting or in typewriting. The Secretary of State, clerk, register of deeds and mortgages and surrogate of any county of this State may make a copy by means of photography, data processing or image processing of any document or instrument and such photographic, data processed or image processed copy, if made, shall have the same legal force, meaning and effect as if made in handwriting or in typewriting. Amended 1939,c.346; 1953,c.45,s.1; 1994,c.140,s.2.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-6 Maps; requirements prerequisite to filing in certain offices

47:1-6. No map, plat, plan or chart of lands, required or that may be required by law to be filed, or that may be presented to the county clerk, register of deeds and mortgages or surrogate in any county of this State, shall be received for filing unless the same shall be made upon translucent tracing cloth, with fast-colored, waterproof ink and be accompanied by a cloth-print duplicate. Amended 1953,c.45,s.2; 1991,c.91,s.466.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-7 § 47:1-7

In the recording of deeds, mortgages, wills or other instruments required or authorized by law to be recorded, the clerk, register of deeds and mortgages, surrogate or other officer required to make the record, shall, in addition to the other indexes made and kept by him, make and keep such classified, analytical or combination index as the board of chosen freeholders of the respective counties shall determine, in index books to be provided for that purpose by the board of chosen freeholders, and shall enter therein, according to the classification thereof, an index of all the names required to be indexed in the alphabetical indexes of their respective offices.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-8 Rerecording worn, mutilated or obscure records; reindexing; cost

47:1-8. Whenever any records of any deeds, mortgages or other instruments of record in the office of any clerk or register of deeds and mortgages of any county of this State are becoming worn out, mutilated, obliterated, obscured, or in such condition that by use the same would be likely to become entirely void, lost or unintelligible, and the title to lands or other property endangered, such clerk or register of deeds and mortgages shall, upon the order of any judge of the Superior Court, rerecord such records anew, in books to be kept in the office of such clerk or register of deeds and mortgages, which books shall be known as the book of "rerecorded deeds," or otherwise, in accordance with the types of instruments so rerecorded, shall be numbered and paged as were the old books, shall be certified by such clerk or register of deeds and mortgages, under his hand and seal, to be true copies of the original records, and shall be reindexed in the appropriate books of indexes of such recorded deeds, mortgages or instruments in such counties, being marked as reindexed. The expense of such rerecording shall be paid by the county in which the same is done, as the judge may determine and direct. Amended 1953,c.45,s.3; 1991,c.91,s.467.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-9 § 47:1-9

The clerks, registers of deeds and mortgages and surrogates of the several counties of this state may, whenever any of the maps on file in their respective offices shall, by public use, become so worn, torn or otherwise impaired as to be wholly or partly illegible, employ a competent person to copy, retrace, redraft or otherwise restore or make legible such maps, and reindex the same. The compensation of the person so employed shall be fixed and paid by the boards of chosen freeholders of the several counties, according to law.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-10 § 47:1-10

All warrants for the cancellation or discharge of bonds, or any other discharges, filed in any county clerk's office in this state shall, in addition to the other requirements of law, have inserted therein the book and page where the bond is recorded; and the respective county clerks may refuse to cancel or satisfy any bond unless such book and page is inserted in such warrants.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-11 Reproduction of public records, use as originals

5. Any public agency, the Secretary of State or the County Clerk, Register, or Surrogate of a county may copy, record, index or transcribe public records by means of photography, data processing, image processing, or other approved means, subject to compliance with the rules and regulations promulgated therefor by the Division of Archives and Records Management in the Department of State. Any document which is a data processed or image processed copy produced and stored in accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated therefor by the division shall be considered a legal substitute for an original document. L.1994,c.140,s.5.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-12 Rules, regulations; systems of recording

6. a. The Division of Archives and Records Management in the Department of State, with the approval of the State Records Committee established pursuant to section 6 of P.L.1953, c.410 (C.47:3-20), shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act and to safeguard the State's documentary heritage. b. No public agency, County Clerk or Register shall adopt, use or employ any system for recording, filing, registration or indexing as authorized by R.S.47:1-5, as amended by this act, unless the same shall conform to the rules and regulations to be promulgated by the Division of Archives and Records Management in the Department of State pursuant to subsection a. of this section, and shall first be approved by the Division of Archives and Records Management. No such system shall be approved until the Division of Archives and Records Management shall have fully promulgated those rules and regulations. c. Any system for recording, filing, registration or indexing as authorized by R.S. 47:1-5, as amended by this act, which employs data processing or image processing, and which was adopted, used or employed prior to the effective date of this act, shall nevertheless be subject to the rules and regulations to be promulgated by the Division of Archives and Records Management pursuant to subsection a. of this section. The approval of the Division of Archives and Records Management shall be necessary to bring about the compliance of such systems, in a prompt and orderly fashion, with the standards set forth in the rules and regulations. L.1994,c.140,s.6.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-13 Alteration, correction, revision of records; notation

7. Whenever it shall be necessary to alter, correct or revise the record pertaining to any paper, document or instrument, or the index pertaining to the same, which shall previously have been recorded, filed, registered, or indexed, the officer responsible for maintaining such records or custodian thereof shall cause a notation to be made of the date and nature of the alteration, correction or revision, which notation shall become part of the record. The officer or custodian shall also preserve the record in its original form prior to alteration, correction or revision, and the same shall be available to any citizen of this State, pursuant to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.). L.1994,c.140,s.7.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-14 Destruction of public records under law

9. No official responsible for maintaining public records or the custodian thereof shall destroy, obliterate or dispose of any paper, document, instrument, or index which shall have been recorded, filed, registered or indexed except as specifically permitted by law. No law, statute or regulation shall be construed to permit the destruction, obliteration or disposal of any such records by implication. L.1994,c.140,s.9.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-15 References to Bureau of Archives and History

10. Whenever in any law, rule, regulation, order, contract, document, judicial or administrative proceeding, or otherwise, reference is made to the Bureau of Archives and History in the Department of Education or the administrator thereof, the same shall be considered to mean and refer to the Division of Archives and Records Management in the Department of State, established pursuant to the Governor's Reorganization Plan, filed April 25, 1983. L.1994,c.140,s.10.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-16 Social security numbers, prohibition of display, printing on certain documents publicly recorded.

1. a. No person, including any public or private entity, shall print or display in any manner an individual's Social Security number on any document intended for public recording with any county recording authority. b. Whenever a document is presented for public recording with any county recording authority and that document displays a person's Social Security number, the recording authority shall delete, strike, obliterate or otherwise expunge that number prior to recording the document. The fact that such a document is recorded without deleting, striking, obliterating or otherwise expunging that Social Security number shall not render the document invalid, void, voidable or in any way defective. c. The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to a document originating with any court or taxing authority, any document that when filed by law constitutes a non-consensual lien against an individual, any publicly recorded document that is required by law to contain a Social Security number, or any document filed with or recorded by a County Surrogate. d. The county recording authority shall not be liable for any claims arising from a violation of this act. L.2005,c.99,s.1.

N.J. Stat. § 47:1-17 Publishing of certain information by governmental agency prohibited.

2. Except as otherwise provided pursuant to sections 1 through 3 of P.L.2021, c.371 (C.47:1B-1 through C.47:1B-3), a State or local governmental agency shall not knowingly post, repost, publish, or republish on the Internet the home address of any covered person approved by the Office of Information Privacy pursuant to section 2 of P.L.2021, c.371 (C.47:1B-2), 31 days or more following such approval, unless the agency obtains the written permission of that person. L.2015, c.226, s.2; amended 2020, c.125, s.4; 2021, c.24, s.3; 2021, c.371, s.7.

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/legislative-activity/statutesFetched: 10/17/2026