Honorable Michael B. Kaplan, Chief Judge

Judge Kaplan's staff may be contacted by telephone, email, or regular mail. Communication by fax is not permitted except with consent of Judge Kaplan. For emergent applications, parties should notify Chambers by email or by telephone. Parties should be guided by D.N.J. LBR 5071-1 regarding adjournment requests which are to be made no later than three business days prior to the hearing. All requests for adjournment should be submitted on local form "Adjournment Request" and directed to the Chambers email box, except adjournment requests in Chapter 13 cases which must be submitted to the Chapter 13 Trustee. Please consult the Chapter 13 Trustee’s website for information regarding adjournment requests of chapter 13 matters. Requests for extension of time should be directed to the Chambers email.  Per D.N.J. LBR 9013-4, proposed forms of order along with proof of service are to be submitted to Judge Kaplan's Chambers e-mail address.

APPEARANCES:

Hearing Recording Prohibited: Any recording of a court proceeding held in-person, by video, teleconference or Zoom, including "screen-shots" or other audio or visual copying of a hearing, is prohibited.  Violation of these prohibitions may result in sanctions, including removal of court-issued media credentials, restricted entry to future hearings, denial of entry to future hearings, or any other sanctions deemed necessary by the Court.

In-Person Appearances: Although not mandatory, Chief Judge Kaplan prefers in-person hearings for contested, non-chapter 13 matters. Please consult the District Court’s website for up-to-date information regarding Courthouse admission: https://www.njd.uscourts.gov/covid-19-orders-procedures-and-changes.  Please note, however, that parties may still choose to appear remotely in lieu of in-person participation (please see procedures below).  In any event, parties are instructed to communicate with their adversary and the Court regarding whether they intend to appear in person or remotely.  Ideally, the Court would like all interested parties to appear via the same method (i.e., everyone appears in person, or everyone participates remotely).

Telephonic appearances: Please be advised that Judge Kaplan's regular Thursday motion calendar (addressing Chapter 7 & 11 matters) will be conducted via Zoom.  Court-Solutions will no longer be utilized for these matters.  Parties wishing to participate telephonically only (i.e. without video) can dial in using the Zoom dial in information (see below). 

The Court’s general calendar for chapter 13 matters (held at 9:00am and 10:00am) will continue to be conducted telephonically via Court-Solutions (see below). (PLEASE NOTE that afternoon holdover matters (generally held at 2:00pm), will be conducted remotely via Zoom.  See further instructions and Zoom link below). Prior consent is not necessary but parties are directed to contact their adversary to coordinate the type of participation (i.e. telephonic or in-person).  All requests for telephonic appearances before Chief Judge Kaplan shall be arranged through CourtSolutions, http://www.Court-Solutions.com, no later than 3:00 p.m. the court day prior to the hearing.  To appear telephonically, parties must create a CourtSolutions account.  Once an account is established, requests to appear telephonically can be submitted to Chambers via the CourtSolutions website.  This request will either be approved or denied by Chief Judge Kaplan’s Chambers.  After a request is approved by Chambers, parties can log into their CourtSolutions account prior to the hearing time, and access the large orange button entitled “Open Hearing Dashboard” for dial-in instructions.  The dial-in information will be the same for every reservation made.  For complete information about CourtSolutions, please visit http://help.court-solutions.com.  For dial-in problems, sign-in problems, or other issues with CourtSolutions, please contact CourtSolutions directly at (917) 746-7476 or email help@Court-Solutions.com.

Consistent with the Court's General Order Regarding Court Operations Under the Exigent Circumstances Created by Coronavirus (COVID-19) (as amended), the Court will conduct all chapter 13 general calendar  matters remotely until further notice.  Please register for telephonic appearances via CourtSolutions using the above instructions.  Telephonic appearance via CourtSolutions for chapter 13 matters applies to the Court’s general chapter 13 calendar (held at 9:00am and 10:00am).  PLEASE NOTE that afternoon holdover matters (generally held at 2:00pm), will be conducted remotely via Zoom (see below).  Counsel and Parties are further advised to consult the chapter 13 trustee's website (www.russotrustee.com/cdl) regarding disposition of their case and the need for an appearance.

To ensure the quality of the record, all calls must be made from quiet locations except in the most extreme circumstances.  Parties are asked to mute their lines – and not use the hold feature – until their case is called.

Zoom Appearances: Beginning February 2, 2023, Judge Kaplan wil conduct his regular, Thursday motion calendar (addressing Chapter 7 & 11 matters) via Zoom.  Connection information for Judge Kaplan's "Thursday Motion Calendar" Zoom proceeding can be found below.  

 Judge Kaplan will continue to hear contested chapter 13 matters via Zoom during the 2:00pm afternoon calendar.  Connection information for Judge Kaplan's "Contested Chapter 13 Matters" Zoom proceeding can be found below. 

No prior registration is needed to appear via Zoom.  PLEASE REVIEW THE ZOOM APPEARANCE GUIDELINES BELOW.  Failure to adhere to these guidelines and an appropriate standard of conduct may result in denial of participation in the Zoom proceeding.  

Zoom is a free video conferencing platform that a party may download and become familiar with prior to the hearing. Information for Zoom may be found at https://zoom.us/ and https://zoomgov.com/.  Please ensure that your computer/device settings allow for video and microphone access so that Judge Kaplan may hear and see you.  To appear via Zoom parties may click on the Zoom link below or use a telephone to dial-in using the dial-in information.  Once connected to Zoom the party will enter the virtual Zoom Courtroom.  Please connect to Zoom at least 15 minutes prior to your hearing.

ZOOM APPEARANCE GUIDELINES

Courtroom behavior. Although held remotely, a Zoom hearing or trial is a judicial proceeding and therefore the formalities of a courtroom must be observed. Parties are expected to conduct themselves in the same way that they would if they were in person in the courtroom. This includes appropriate formality and attire.

“Public Proceedings.” Please be reminded that the Zoom proceeding is a “public proceeding” and the Zoom connection information is publicly available on the Court’s website.  Thus, any party interested may “listen in” to the Zoom proceeding. Parties who “listen in” must have their cameras off and their microphones muted at all times.  Failure to adhere to this rule will result in removal from the Zoom proceeding.

Video/audio. All video and audio will be off upon entry into the Zoom courtroom.  The Court requests that each party remain muted with camera off until such time as their matter is called or until the Court directs otherwise.  The Court prefers that parties appear with their video on; however, video is not mandatory.  If necessary, parties may appear without video and/or may appear telephonically by dialing into the Zoom using the dial-in information.  Links to the Zoom meeting and dial-in information can be found below.

Speaking and Questions. Each time you speak, identify yourself by stating your full name for the record. Remember to speak slowly and distinctly. Do not interrupt others. As stated above, please remain muted until your case is called or directed otherwise by the Court.  Should you have a question during the Zoom proceeding you may direct that question in the “Chat” or “raise your hand” by clicking the hand raise button.  Questions may also be submitted via email to Chief Judge Kaplan’s Chambers at chambers_of_mbk@njb.uscourts.gov.  If you are participating telephonically, please wait for a pause in conversation before identifying yourself to ask a question.

Participate from a quiet place with reliable reception. Do not use a speaker phone or call/log in from a public place. Disruptions or background noise may cause the Judge to mute you or terminate your participation.

Technical Problems. If you are having trouble with the video or audio or other technical difficulties, please let the Court know as soon as possible. Though glitches are expected, they do not always occur on the Court’s end, so the Court will not necessarily know if you are experiencing problems until you so advise the Court.  To report these problems you may use the “chat” feature, the “raise hand” feature, email Chambers at chambers_of_mbk@njb.uscourts.gov, or call Chambers at (609) 858-9360.