ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
01-2-5507 New Jersey Office of the Public Defender v. New Jersey Department of Human Services, App. Div. (Haven, J.A.D.) (12 pp.) Appellant New Jersey Office of the Public Defender filed this appeal against the Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services pursuant to Rule 2:2-3(a)(2), which allows review of the validity of any rule promulgated by a State administrative agency. The Public Defender contended that an administrative rule promulgated by the Department that governs the process by which a special status patient (SSP) at State psychiatric hospitals may be approved for a decrease in supervision or discharge and a memo that clarifies the appropriate content of court testimony at certain commitment hearings violate the due process rights of civilly committed patients. The appellate panel dismissed the appeal. The panel found that neither the rule nor the memo exceeds the authority granted to the Department. The Special Status Patient Review Committee review process functions within the constraints of the required and routine court review of commitment for SSPs.
