Several members of the state Senate’s Judiciary Committee have expressed frustration with Superior Court appointee Jill Mayer, who will reportedly not take the oath of office nearly three years after the Senate confirmed her.
A three-year dispute over whether Mayer was allowed to draw a state pension from her time as a Camden County prosecutor and deputy attorney general while also collecting a salary for the judgeship meant Mayer never actually took the seat on the bench. Last month — 33 months after the Senate confirmed her — an appellate court ruled she could keep her $127,000 annual pension based on the timing of when she would join the court.
But now she’s received another offer and will not accept the judgeship after all.
State Sen. Brian Stack (D-Union City), the chair of the Judiciary Committee, did not rule out holding a hearing and compelling Mayer to testify to learn what happened.
“She owes the Senate an explanation,” Stack told the New Jersey Globe. “It’s abusive. To take the appointment and hold it for this many years is disgraceful. She needs to tell senators what happened, not just walk away.”
State Sens. Vin Gopal (D-Union City) and Troy Singleton (D-Delran) expressed similar concerns and said they hope to hear from Mayer about why she never took the bench.
“If I remember correctly, she owes a pretty big explanation,” Gopal said. “I think that people work really hard and spend years trying to get appointed to be a Superior Court judge, and I think this is a very serious process.”
Mayer filed for retirement in December 2021. With a salary bump to $197,000 during more than two years as acting Camden County Prosecutor, Mayer qualified for an annual pension of roughly $10,600 monthly.
Since Mayer had not been sworn in and the requisite 180 days had passed, she left her old state job; a state appellate court found that she was clear to take her pension while collecting her $211,000 salary.
While waiting to take the judgeship, Mayer joined a politically connected South Jersey law firm, Parker McCay, as counsel. For a while, Mayer’s biography on the firm’s website listed that she had been confirmed by the Senate to the Superior Court.
Mayer did not return a request for comment.