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My question for anyone who's clerked for the New Jersey Supreme Court or otherwise worked in Trenton -- would it be crazy to try to commute to a NJ Supreme Court clerkship from Manhattan or Newark/Jersey City?

Newark to Trenton is long but doable. It's probably in the 90 minute range door-to-door on NJ Transit. There are a few law clerks in the Appellate Division and folks in the AG's office that commute from there. But once you get to NYC or Jersey City, you're pushing two hours or more each way. That starts to be a big quality of life issue, and you're spending a big chunk of your free time on a train. Because Trenton is such a terrible city, pretty much everyone has a decent commute. The more popular places are Princeton, New Brunswick, and Highland Park from the North and the Philly burbs from the South.

Keep in mind, though, that although the Supreme Court conferences and hears argument in Trenton, most of the justices have their chambers in other parts of the state. Think Somerville (Albin), Morristown (Patterson & LaVecchia), Fairfield (Rabner), and South Jersey (Solomon). Those are generally much more desirable places to live.

OP here. Thanks, that is extremely helpful info.

To echo the above, your commute should be based on the location of the specific chambers, which are spread all over NJ. To add to the list, Fernandez-Vina's chambers are on the Delaware River in Camden.