Clark Municipal Court – What To Know

Reviewed by William A. Proetta, Esq. · Updated October 2026

Clark Municipal Court is located at 315 Westfield Avenue, Clark, NJ 07066, in the same building as Clark Police Headquarters, and the township says its sessions are held virtually at 9:00 a.m. on the first, second and third Wednesdays of each month. It handles traffic and parking tickets, DWI cases, disorderly persons offenses and ordinance violations from Clark, including tickets written around Garden State Parkway Exit 135. The New Jersey Judiciary’s own listing shows a different pattern (second and fourth Wednesdays), so whatever date appears on your notice is the one that counts. To have a lawyer look over a Clark charge at no cost, call (908) 838-0150; we pick up 24/7 and our staff speaks Spanish.

Clark Criminal Defense Lawyer

In Clark, most people facing the municipal court never set foot in a courtroom, but a video hearing carries the same consequences as an in-person one. A shoplifting or harassment conviction stays on your record, and a careless driving or DWI ticket can bring points, surcharges and a lost license. We defend Clark residents and out-of-town drivers charged here as part of our Union County criminal practice.

Why Clark Clients Call Us

• Wednesday-morning video court. Clark’s 9:00 a.m. virtual sessions mean you may have to step away from work on a weekday. We help you prepare so the time on camera counts.
• Conflicting schedules in public listings. The township and the Judiciary list different Wednesdays. We confirm the actual date with the court so you don’t miss it.
• A traffic-heavy court. Nearly nine in ten Clark criminal and traffic filings last year, leaving parking aside, were moving violations, and the Parkway and the Clark Circle both run through town, so negotiating points and surcharges is a large part of the work here.
• A steady DWI caseload. Clark recorded 40 DWI filings in each of the last two reporting years, and each one deserves a close look at the stop, the testing and the paperwork.

Court and Police Under One Roof

Clark’s court shares 315 Westfield Avenue with Clark Police Headquarters, which shapes how the building works for anyone with a case.

• Payments after closing go to the police lobby. Once the court window shuts for the day, Clark accepts payments through a box located in the lobby of Police Headquarters.
• The officer who wrote your ticket works in the same building. That does not change your rights. Do not discuss the facts with anyone there without your lawyer.
• The office is open weekdays, 8:30 to 4. Phone (732) 381-5395, fax (732) 381-9630, or email clark.mc@njcourts.gov.
• Most hearings are remote. Because sessions are held virtually, check your notice before driving to Westfield Avenue for a court date.

Who Runs the Clark Court

The township’s court page names the full team. Antonio Inacio is the municipal judge. Agata Kozak, CMCA, is the court administrator, Rachel Robertson is the deputy court administrator, and Christine Drajin is the violations clerk. JH Barr serves as chief prosecutor with Robert Pansulla as a second prosecutor, and Jared Weiss is the municipal public defender. Knowing which office handles what saves time: payment and scheduling questions go to the court staff, while plea offers come from the prosecutors.

What Clark’s Court Numbers Mean

Clark Municipal Court logged 4,857 criminal and traffic filings in the twelve-month reporting period of July 2025 to June 2026, about 17% more than the 4,154 it received a year earlier, state judiciary statistics show. The criminal side included 184 indictable complaints, which belong in Superior Court and stay there unless they are downgraded, along with 270 disorderly and petty disorderly persons complaints. DWI held perfectly steady at 40 filings in both years. Moving violations dominated at 4,289, roughly 88% of everything counted.

Clark resolved 4,613 of these cases, a 95% clearance rate. Anything under 100% means intake outran dispositions, so the docket inched upward. The state lists 141 backlogged cases and 586 active pending ones on the same basis. With sessions held virtually on only a few Wednesday mornings a month, even a small surplus can add weeks before a matter is reached. Clark also wrote 298 parking tickets, which are deliberately kept out of these numbers. None of this tells you how a particular charge will be decided; it describes volume only.

Clark’s Virtual Court and Online Review

Clark offers two remote paths, and the right one depends on your charge.

• Online Municipal Case Resolution first. For eligible tickets, the court points defendants to the case dispute tool on njmcdirect.com, where a prosecutor reviews the matter without a hearing.
• Otherwise, request the Clark Virtual Municipal Court. If your case is not eligible for online review, or you want to be heard, you can ask for a virtual court appearance.
• Read the Opening Statement. The township posts the Municipal Court Opening Statement in English and in Spanish. It explains your rights before the judge calls your case.
• Be ready at 9:00 a.m. Log in a few minutes early from a quiet, stationary spot with your camera on and your summons in hand.
• Lost the connection details? Phone the court office at (732) 381-5395 during business hours, well ahead of the session.

What Cases Does Clark Municipal Court Handle?

Clark’s municipal judge decides motor vehicle and parking matters, DWI, petty disorderly and disorderly persons offenses, and township ordinance cases. Typical Clark charges are below, each followed by its section of the New Jersey Statutes Annotated, cited in parentheses.

Criminal and Disorderly Persons Offenses

• Harassment by text, phone call or in person (2C:33-4)
• Taking property worth less than $200, charged as theft (2C:20-3)
• Store-related shoplifting complaints (2C:20-11)
• Fights and family disputes charged as simple assault (2C:12-1(a))
• Pipes, scales or baggies found in a car, charged as paraphernalia (2C:36-2)
• Fighting, threatening or violent, tumultuous behavior charged as disorderly conduct (2C:33-2)

DWI and Traffic Offenses

• Operating under the influence, Clark’s DWI charge (39:4-50)
• Crashes and close calls near the Clark Circle, often written as careless driving (39:4-97)
• No valid policy on the car — uninsured operation (39:6B-2)
• Getting behind the wheel during a license suspension (39:3-40)
• Declining to give breath samples, an Alcotest refusal (39:4-50.4a)
• Driving away after a collision — leaving the scene (39:4-129)

Clark tickets often start at the Clark Circle, where Parkway Exit 135 meets Central Avenue, Brant Avenue and Valley Road. Others come from Westfield Avenue, Central Avenue and traffic around destinations like the Hyatt Hills Golf Complex and Oak Ridge Park.

Paying or Contesting a Clark Ticket

If no court appearance is mandatory, a Clark ticket may be paid online through NJMCdirect, or left with Clark’s police-lobby box when the court office is closed.

• A bounced check costs extra. Clark’s Town Code (§ 3-43) adds a $25 fee when a check for fines and costs is returned for insufficient funds.
• A payment is a conviction. Once the fine is paid, the court treats it as a guilty plea, and MVC points and surcharges follow on their own.
• Dispute it instead? Use Online Case Resolution or request a virtual hearing, ideally after a lawyer has looked at whether the ticket can be amended.
• The public defender is not always free. Under Town Code § 3-42, the judge may set a fee for an assigned public defender based on your ability to pay.

Preparing for Your Court Date

• Verify which Wednesday. Because the township and the Judiciary list different weeks, call the court or check your notice rather than guessing.
• Plan for a morning away from work. Sessions start at 9:00 a.m., and cases are not always reached right away.
• Update your email and mailing address with the Clark court office so hearing links and notices reach you.
• Have documents within reach on camera: summons, license, registration and proof of insurance.
• Use a Spanish-language Opening Statement if it helps, and tell the court in advance if you need an interpreter.

When a Clark Charge Leaves Municipal Court

Serious charges filed by Clark police, such as aggravated assault, burglary, most drug possession and thefts of $200 or more, are indictable crimes that the Clark court cannot decide. Those files go to the Union County Prosecutor’s Office and, if indicted, to Superior Court in Elizabeth. Some of those files come back: a prosecutor can reduce the charge to a lower-level offense and send it back to the Clark judge. Eligible defendants may also apply for PTI, and other diversion options can lead to a dismissal instead of a conviction.

Nearby Courts

Clark is bordered by Scotch Plains, Westfield, Cranford, Linden and Rahway, along with Winfield Township and, across the county line, Woodbridge Township in Middlesex County. A Parkway ticket written just past Exit 135 may belong to a neighboring town’s court, so read the court name printed on your summons. The township keeps its notices and forms on the Clark Municipal Court website.

Clark Municipal Court FAQs

Talk to a Clark Criminal Defense Lawyer Today

A Clark court date can arrive quickly, especially with sessions running several Wednesdays a month. Phone (908) 838-0150 for a confidential case review at no charge, any time, day or night. Hablamos español. If coming in is easier than a call or video meeting, we can set up an in-person consultation instead.