Mahwah, New Jersey Car Accident Lawyer

Mahwah, New Jersey is a township in northwestern Bergen County. In 2009, Mahwah was home to 24,108 residents according to the U.S. Census Bureau. As the largest municipality in Bergen County, Mahwah encompasses 26-square miles and has more open space than any other township in Bergen County.

Mahwah is a suburban township bordered by the towns of Upper Saddle River, Ramsey, Allendale, Wyckoff, Franklin Lakes and Oakland in Bergen County, Ringwood in County and Ramapo and Suffern in Rockland County, New York. The scenic Ramapo Mountains and the Ramapo River are on Mahwah’s northwestern border.

Interstate 287 passes through Mahwah, but the only point of access is at the New Jersey / New York border, where I-287 meets Route 17. Historic U.S. Route 202 also runs through Mahwah from Oakland, New Jersey to Suffern, New York.

The National Highway Safety Administration reports that twenty-six people were fatally injured in vehicle crashes in Bergen County during 2009. Eight fatalities occurred as the result of vehicle accidents involving alcohol-impaired drivers, and twelve pedestrians were killed as a result of vehicle accidents.

The Good Samaritan Hospital, an Area Level II Trauma Center in Suffern, New York, is the closest hospital to Mahwah. Trauma patients include persons involved in motor vehicle crashes, falls and assaults. Hospitals in Bergen County include Bergen County’s largest employer, the 775-bed teaching and research hospital Hackensack University Medical Center. It is also New Jersey’s largest health care provider with approximately 1,500 doctors on staff. In addition, the Bergen Regional Medical Center in Paramus is both the largest hospital with 1,070 beds and the largest licensed nursing home in New Jersey. Nearby Holy Name Medical Center, in Teaneck, which is a 361-bed acute care medical center.

New Jersey’s ratio of primary care doctors to patients is 36 percent below the national average. A recent study by the New Jersey Council of Teaching Hospitals (NJCTH) has warned of a shortage of doctors in New Jersey.  The NJCTH also states an estimated 98,000 deaths occur annually from preventable hospital mistakes or mishaps.

The structure of New Jersey’s court system is among the most simple in the nation. The state has only the following  types of courts: Municipal courts, Tax Court, state Superior Court, which includes the trial courts, an Appellate Division and the New Jersey Supreme Court. The Mahwah Municipal Court is held at 475 Corporate Drive, Mahwah, NJ 07430. The Municipal courts in New Jersey are considered courts of limited jurisdiction, having responsibility for motor vehicle and parking tickets, minor criminal offenses and municipal ordinance offenses. Mahwah also utilizes the trial court in Bergen County, which is located at the Bergen County Justice Center, 10 Main Street, Hackensack, NJ 07601. Both criminal and civil cases are heard at the trial court level. Typical civil cases involve contracts, personal injury, automobile accidents, employment and discrimination cases.