New Jersey Eviction Record Sealing: No-Judgment Cases Hidden

By Steve Levine · Updated November 3, 2026

Short answer: New Jersey eviction record sealing runs mainly through a court rule, not a petition. Since May 1, 2022, N.J. Court Rule 1:38-3(f)(11) has excluded from public access every landlord-tenant case that ended without a judgment for possession, plus any case where the judgment for possession is seven or more years old. Separately, a 2021 statute, P.L.2021, c.189 (N.J.S.A. 2A:42-144 to -148), makes COVID-era nonpayment case records confidential and bars landlords from considering them.

The flip side is strict. In a February 4, 2026 decision, the Appellate Division held that the rule creates “an unequivocal bar” to sealing when a judgment for possession was entered less than seven years ago, and that a judge has no discretion to seal it based on equitable factors or compelling circumstances (Mott v. Shepherd, A-0765-24, unpublished). So in New Jersey, the single most important question is whether your case ended with a judgment for possession.

New Jersey eviction record sealing rules in one table

Rule	New Jersey	Source
Cases with no judgment for possession	Excluded from public access once adjudicated or otherwise disposed of	R. 1:38-3(f)(11)(i)
Judgment for possession 7+ years old	Excluded from public access	R. 1:38-3(f)(11)(ii)
Judgment for possession under 7 years	Cannot be sealed on equitable grounds	Mott v. Shepherd (App. Div. 2026)
Consent order to surrender	Not a judgment for possession, so not subject to the 7-year public period	Pine Ridge Realty v. A.O. (App. Div. 2026)
COVID-era nonpayment cases	Confidential; landlords may not consider them; screening services may not knowingly provide them	N.J.S.A. 2A:42-144 to -148
Penalty for using COVID-era records	At least $1,000 first offense; at least $5,000 after	P.L.2021, c.189, § 5
Screening report limit (federal)	7 years from entry, or longer limitations period	15 U.S.C. § 1681c(a)(2)

How Rule 1:38-3(f)(11) works

The New Jersey Supreme Court adopted the amendment by order dated February 28, 2022, effective May 1, 2022. The adopted text excludes from public access “Records of (i) adjudicated or otherwise disposed of landlord tenant cases in which no judgment for possession ever has been entered; and (ii) landlord tenant cases in which judgment for possession was entered seven years ago or longer.” The accompanying Notice to the Bar explains that dated tenant information “should not create indefinite obstacles to rental housing.”

Because the rule is written as a category of records excluded from public access, it does not require a sealing petition. Cases that were dismissed, withdrawn, or resolved without a judgment for possession fall into category (i) once they are disposed of. If you find a qualifying case still visible, tenants in practice file a motion in the landlord-tenant case asking the court to apply the rule, which is how both 2026 appeals reached the Appellate Division.

The consent-order question

Many New Jersey cases end in a settlement on court forms rather than a trial. That distinction now matters. In Pine Ridge Realty Associates v. A.O., approved for publication on February 4, 2026, the Appellate Division asked whether a consent order to surrender the property is a judgment for possession that must stay public for seven years, and concluded “it does not.” By contrast, the tenant in Mott had signed a “Consent to Enter Judgment (Tenant Stays in Premises),” which entered a judgment, and her record could not be sealed.

The practical takeaway: before you sign a settlement, read the title and the operative language. An agreement that results in a judgment for possession stays public for seven years. One that ends with a dismissal or a consent order to surrender, without a judgment for possession, falls under category (i).

The COVID-era statute: P.L.2021, c.189

Approved August 4, 2021, P.L.2021, c.189 covers landlord-tenant actions filed between March 9, 2020 and the end of the “emergency period,” defined as the public health emergency under Executive Order No. 103 of 2020, as extended, plus the following 60 days. A court record of an action arising from nonpayment or habitually late payment of rent during that period “shall be confidential and unavailable to the public.”

A landlord evaluating a prospective tenant “shall not consider” such a record (§ 4(a)).
A person or tenant screening service shall not knowingly provide court filing information from such a record to a landlord (§ 4(b)).
Companies that sell court filing information had 30 days after the law took effect to remove restricted records (§ 4(c)).
A knowing violation carries a penalty of not less than $1,000 for a first offense and not less than $5,000 for each later offense, plus reasonable attorney fees, enforceable by the Attorney General (§ 5).

Tenant screening reports and the FCRA

For records the court still shows publicly, the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act sets an outer limit: civil suits and judgments generally cannot be reported once they are more than seven years past the date of entry, unless the governing statute of limitations is longer (15 U.S.C. § 1681c(a)(2)). New Jersey’s court rule lines up with that seven-year mark from the courthouse side.

A screening company that still reports a dismissed case, a consent-order case, or a COVID-era nonpayment case is a good target for a dispute. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1681i, it must reinvestigate within 30 days and delete or modify what is inaccurate or cannot be verified. The CFPB also suggests disputing with the source of the information (CFPB). See our tenant screening report explainer for how to request your file.

Worked example: a Trenton renter with two cases

Andre rents in Trenton. In 2024 his landlord filed a nonpayment case, and in court the two signed a consent order for Andre to surrender the apartment by a set date; no judgment for possession was entered. Under Pine Ridge, that case falls into category (i) once disposed of, and Andre can ask the court to apply Rule 1:38-3(f)(11) if it still appears.

Andre also has an older case: a judgment for possession entered on October 1, 2019 in a holdover dispute. That judgment stays public until October 1, 2026, the seven-year mark, and then falls into category (ii). Had he moved to seal it in 2025, Mott shows the court would have had no discretion to grant the motion, however strong his reasons.

When the record stays public

If you have a judgment for possession less than seven years old, the rule gives you no sealing path, so focus on accuracy and explanation. Request your screening file (free within 60 days of a denial, under 15 U.S.C. § 1681j(b)), correct any errors, and give landlords proof of what has changed since. For future cases, steer settlements toward a dismissal or a consent order to surrender rather than a consent judgment. You can read how cases move through court on the eviction process by state page, and see the general how to seal an eviction record guide. Questions about getting your deposit back after a move-out are covered in New Jersey security deposit law.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to file a motion to seal a dismissed New Jersey eviction?

Rule 1:38-3(f)(11) excludes records of disposed landlord-tenant cases with no judgment for possession from public access, so no petition is built into the rule. If the case still appears, a motion in the same case asking the court to apply the rule is the usual fix.

Can a judge seal my New Jersey eviction judgment early because of hardship?

Not under current case law. In Mott v. Shepherd (App. Div. Feb. 4, 2026), the court held the rule is an unequivocal bar for judgments for possession under seven years old, even with compelling equities. The opinion is unpublished, but it follows the rule’s text.

Is a consent order to move out treated as an eviction judgment?

A consent order to surrender is not a judgment for possession, according to the published Pine Ridge decision, so it does not have to stay public for seven years. A “consent to enter judgment” is different and does enter a judgment.

Can a landlord reject me over a 2020 nonpayment case?

If the case was filed on or after March 9, 2020 and within the statutory emergency period, N.J.S.A. 2A:42-144 to -148 make the record confidential and forbid a landlord from considering it. A knowing violation can bring a penalty of at least $1,000.

Your next step: if a case is still visible that should not be, call the LSNJ Statewide Legal Assistance Hotline at 1-888-576-5529 (LSNJLaw) before you file. This page is general information, not legal advice; LSC’s get legal help page also lists programs. Compare other states on our eviction record sealing by state hub.

Sources

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