"The Robing Room: NJ State Judges

Hon. Harriet E. Derman	See Rating Details
Superior Court Judge Superior Court
Somerset County Vicinage 13	See Comments

Attorney Average Rating: 3.4 - 3 rating(s) Non-Attorney Average Rating: 2.0 - 1 rating(s)	Please send me alerts on this judge E-mail Address:

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Only items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating.

General Rating Criteria

* Temperament		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Scholarship		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Industriousness		(1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
* Ability to Handle Complex Litigation		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Punctuality		(1=Chronically Late,10=Always on Time)
* General Ability to Handle Pre-Trial Matters		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
* General Ability as a Trial Judge		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
Flexibility In Scheduling		(1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)

Criminal Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation		(1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
General Inclination Regarding Bail		(1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Plea Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved, 10=Very Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pretrial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)

Civil Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation		(1=Not at all Evenhanded,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Involvement in Settlement Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved,10=Very Involved)
General Inclination		(1=Pro-defendant, 10=Pro-plaintiff)

Comments

What others have said about Hon. Harriet E. Derman

Comments

Litigant

Comment #: NJ290
Rating:2.0

Comments:
She ignores the actual facts of the case and uses her personal opinion of the litigants to create facts and then uses her "facts" to justify a ruling that contradicts the basic actions taken by the litigants. This then leads to a false ruling.
She also makes laws from the bench to protect the litigant she feels was abused because she feels sorry for that litigant. In doing so, she totally ignores the harm done by the litigant who actually caused the problems.
If she doesn't like you, she lets you know and she tramples you in every way possible for no justifiable reason.
Apparently she recently retired and now she can no longer act like a GOD in court.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NJ197
Rating:3.5

Comments:
Makes no effort to understand the matters before her and gives no indication that she listens to anything that the parties have to say.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NJ52
Rating:3.4

Comments:
Overall one of the most condescending, temperamental judges I have encountered. Very difficult to have a fair discussion with this judge. She just flat-out often makes bad decisions.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NJ37
Rating:3.3

Comments:
She is a terrible judge. I base this on my numerous (dozens) of appearances before her. She can be sarcastic, sometimes to the point of being borderline cruel. She often exercises poor legal judgment, and generally lacks the empathy, demeanor and sense of justice that a good judge should possess.