Joseph G. Monaghan

WORST experience ever, surprised he's allowed to judge anything

Judge Monaghan is a man who is clearly unhappy with himself, and therefore treats litigants like absolute garbage. He is completely biased against self-represented litigants. I just had a trial where I self-represented myself. My ex boyfriend was the defendant who did have an attorney. He yelled, screamed, embarrassed me the entire trial while I had mounds of evidence, most of which this judge would not even accept as exhibits, meanwhile they were literally bank statements that proved my case. He should not be allowed on the bench. The defendant who did have an attorney has a record with the Bergen county courts where he was arrested for fighting cops, beating up women and even a jail escape charge as well as another attempted escape during an arrest, and this judge treated the defendant with the utmost respect. The defendant had 0 evidence, was uncooperative during the discovery process and he won, I lost. Judge Monaghan was terribly awful to me the entire time. Actually said to me when I asked if I should stand in such a sarcastic tone, "No, unless you want to go to law school." and here I am a special education teacher, who works with children with disabilities everyday, and he treated me like a criminal. I put in a grievance with the board in Trenton. I hope to God they get rid of this corrupt judge!!

Judge Monaghan lacks the temperament, professionalism, and legal knowledge required for judicial service. He is arrogant, uncourteous, and regularly belittles and insults parties without cause. His rulings are biased, unreasoned, and inconsistent with fair process.

This individual is a discredit to his profession and should be removed without delay before causing further harm. He is incompetent, rude, and fixated on pushing through as many cases as possible in a single day. He treats those before him as if they are beneath him, rather than recognizing his role as a public servant. His behavior brings disrepute to the bench, as well as to Bergen County and the State of New Jersey.

Hes the rudest judge ever. He doesn't want to hear ur side, and I had all the evidence at hand. When we spoke, both parties, to the mediator, we can to term to a settlement. When the mediator went to speak to the judge He took matters in his own injustice hands. Before court actually begins he speaks alot of nonsense that Noone wants to hear, and puts himself in a pedalstool n says how justice he is, notttt... hes full of himself. Should be disbarred actually bc hes Not humble or justice. Everything is at his coincidence. I bet if the defendant,in my case, owed the State or him he would had made him pay every penny!!! Very Injustice. The Legal system with these kind of judges fail all of us that actually are victims.

Recently had a case before Judge Monaghan, and I can see why some attorneys don’t like him. It’s his court room, and if you are not prepared he will let you know about it. He is very strict and demands your attention, I thought that was fair since we are all there to see him and have our case tried. He was very fair but did not tolerate incompetence. If you come prepared, present your evidence he will try your case fairly. If you go in ill prepared your screwed! He saw straight through the nonsense of the defendant and repeated everything that I was thinking occurred when they tried to charge me incorrectly. Take my advice if you go in front of this judge pay attention, speak up, respect his courtroom and present your evidence confidently when he asks for it and he will judge your case fairly… you go in and waste his time he will dismiss you

I've been practicing for a bit, and Monaghan is the worst judge I've ever encountered anywhere. He's even worse than Joe Rosa, and that's saying something. In fact, Monaghan makes Rosa look like Learned Hand. The thing that distinguishes Monaghan is that he has the dual distinction of being really stupid and really nasty in a totally gratuitous, pathological, almost comical way. You could tolerate a stupid judge as long as he was nice, and you could tolerate a nasty judge as long as he was smart. But a judge who's both really stupid and really nasty is an affront. I get the impression that Monaghan was probably a zero as a practitioner and went "robe hunting" so that people would be forced to give him the respect he couldn't earn in practice. On the plus side, they'll be able to host his retirement dinner in a phonebooth.

Terrible! I'm surprised the ACJC isn't monitoring Judge Joseph G. Monaghan's courtroom. Recently I spent a day in Judge Monaghan's court. The judge spends the first 45 minutes talking about his past cases and esteemed career in the Small Claims Court. Then more talk, trying to scare everyone into settling, rather than presenting a case, in 10 minutes or less. He stated that many (if not most) winning cases take up to 10 years to get paid, sometimes 20 years, and after all those years, successful plaintiffs might get very little money--he mentioned a recent verdict from his court, that took 20 years, and then paid one penny. Reluctantly he will listen to a case: Open in 2 sentences or less; No information or explanation not in your initial written claim; He would not look at any evidence you would present, including actual defective items (or even their photos) that had prompted your case. Get his name on your docket? Just quit your claim, and take your loss as a bad learning experience.

Judge Monaghan is one of the worst things in Bergen County next to the high property taxes. He is incredibly rude to the litigants, as well as their attorneys, and he should not be on the bench. It's truly a shame because Bergen has a very solid compliment of judges at the moment and Monaghan brings them all down.

He claimed to have read all the filings and accused me of not filing an estate claim, when the said estate claim and certified mail return receipt are included in the exhibits. (I.e. he is, above all, an LIAR.) Also despite me having a physical disability, he refused to conduct a Zoom hearing even though the defendant also agreed to it. Overall, he’s an angry, ignorant, racist, and most of all, unqualified judge who screwed me out of tens of thousands of dollars awarded to me in a judgment from a previous case. Truly a despicable person. The only thing I am left to do is to put a hex on his entire family and pray that they all suffer tenfold of all the harm and injustices he alone has inflicted on everyone who has ever had the misfortune of appearing before him.

Horrible judge and person. Belittles people for no good reason. Definitely has a Napoleon complex. This judge should not be on the bench.

On the day of my trial, before settlement talks began, the judge shared a profound insight: he quoted Abraham Lincoln, saying that lawyers are “peacemakers”. That statement really stuck with me. It framed the legal process in a new light — not just as a fight, but as a way to resolve conflicts fairly and protect the rights of all parties involved.

This judge is unable to settle simple cases because he has no judicial temperment. He is rude to counsel and litigants and has no knowledge of the law. Because of his ignorance, he yells and belittles parties. He should be removed from the bench as the court system would be much better without him.

Judge Joseph Monaghan is an incredibly skilled and discerning judge, able to see through dishonesty and noncompliance with remarkable clarity. During my court hearing, he swiftly exposed my ex-boyfriend’s attempt to lie under oath. Recognizing his bad faith, Judge Monaghan not only called him out but also disciplined him accordingly, ultimately ruling in my favor. His unwavering commitment to justice and integrity made a powerful statement and restored fairness in the courtroom.

Judge Joesph Monaghan was unwaveringly fair in my case. He immediately recognized when the defendant attempted to alter our settled agreement after mediation. During our trial hearing, he held the defendant accountable and made sure he faced the consequences of his actions. While Judge Monaghan’s demeanor can come across as stern and strict, it’s clear he demands respect in the courtroom, and that is something I respect. I understand the frustration expressed by others, but from my experience, he is a highly informed judge who remains logical, fair, and direct. His approach might be tough, but it is precisely what ensures the integrity of the process.

I left his courtroom at 11am today and am still in shock as a pro-se plaintiff. After listening to him berate and bully everyone, including me when I got up there, I decided to ask for an adjournment, hire a lawyer and hopefully file an amended complaint with a higher dollar amount to get my case away from him! Even the lawyers in his courtroom were obviously uncomfortable with his verbal abuse. I read there's a shortage of judges in Bergen County. Anyone know why?

Terrible for all litigant's because he is far more concerned about clearing the calendar than actually providing a litigant with a fair trial. He regularly and consistently denied litigant's the opportunity to prepare for trial and fails to provide time for discovery. Forces litigants to come to court and beg for the time they are entitled to conduct discovery. Essentially, he could care less about the parties rights and should be removed.

I recently had a small claims case with this judge. I had a very clear cut case against the company I was suing. I read the laws regarding my case, and it was clear the defendant performed unauthorized repairs to my car. We had a written estimate from this repair shop (Chrysler of Paramus Service Center-NEVER USE THIS PLACE. SEE PAST REVIEWS!) both in email and texts, which we provided to the judge. The defendant had nothing except a form they scribbled my email down on as "proof" we authorized this repair. There was a second service done on our car we paid for as well, but knew for a fact they did not perform that service. The judge gave a speech about the defendant having no personal interest in the money, therefore, he had a little more credibility. How that makes a defendant more credible than a plaintiff, I cannot figure that one out. The judge also insinuated we should've had before AND after pictures of the work we knew was never done. Which is ridiculous because we were not preparing to be ripped off when we dropped our car off for service. The real botching of this case came when Judge Monaghan was giving his closing statement before rendering his verdict. It became very clear he was confused what we were even suing for, and began naming the wrong services. But it was too late, we couldn't speak anymore because as many judges, his ego has gotten the best of him and he will snap at anyone, yelling at them or kicking them out of the room. The threat of being yelled at by this guy did not help me as a citizen asserting my basic rights, to explain my side in full. And before a judge renders a decision in a case, should they not be familiar with the laws surrounding the premise of the lawsuit? This judge was not only confused about what our lawsuit was about (Even though we submitted evidence a week in advance), but he created an atmosphere of fear for the private citizen who naturally does not always have an attorney as this is small claims. Massive ego t

Everything said about this unprofessional judge is true. He should be disbarred or removed. The court room is all about him. Insults people for no reason. His decisions are biased and without reasons. Does not allow for credible evidence if he feels you have not heard his rants or if you lowered your head or smiled or begin your question with a statement. He is an embarrassment for the Bergen County civil court. One can easily see how his unhappiness has been transferred to the court.

The rudest treatment I have seen of a client witness in 25 years of practicing. Seemingly in the name of efficiency, but gassed on about how the client witness was long-winded when giving the ruling (she was not, and well reined in when she strayed even a little bit). So self-important.