Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Administrative Hearings topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council adopts ordinance replacing some appeal hearings with appointed administrative law judge
Summary
Linden City Council adopted Ordinance 2025-15-O to establish an administrative hearings process and enable the mayor to appoint an administrative law judge (ALJ) to hear appeals and some enforcement matters previously heard by the Board of Adjustment. The vote was unanimous.
The Linden City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to adopt Ordinance 2025-15-O, which creates a formal administrative-hearings process and authorizes the mayor to appoint an executive or contract administrative law judge to hear land-use appeals, code-enforcement hearings and certain subdivision-related matters.
City Attorney Brian Hawes and staff told the council the change responds to evolving state law and the technical complexity of modern land-use appeals. "We re proposing to appoint an administrative law judge who would be law-trained and have expertise to address those matters," Hawes said during the public hearing. The ordinance updates multiple code cross-references and provides for limited exceptions such as de novo hearings in cases where both parties stipulate.
Council members said the Board of Adjustment has served the city for years but noted difficulty assembling a quorum and the increased legal and technical demands of recent cases. Council member Lincoln Jacobs moved to approve the ordinance and Council member Hoyt seconded the motion. The ordinance passed by unanimous vote.
What the ordinance does
- Authorizes the mayor to initiate a request-for-proposals and recommend appointment of an administrative law judge under contract. - Transfers many quasi-judicial appeal functions from the Board of Adjustment to the appointed ALJ, while retaining remand and deference pathways outlined in code. - Allows for expert panels in technical engineering appeals where statute requires them.
Officials said the ALJ will generally review the administrative record and determine whether lower administrative decisions were arbitrary, capricious, illegal or unsupported by evidence; in cases where the ALJ finds inadequate record work the matter can be remanded back to the underlying body.
Council action and next steps
The ordinance was adopted following a public hearing. Staff and the city attorney said they will proceed with a request-for-proposals process for candidates, return to council with a recommended appointment and update cross-referenced code sections as needed.
