NJSBA Family Law Section

Good morning Family Law Section members,

On Tuesday, June 7, NJICLE will present Webcast- Human Trafficking in New Jersey – Why Your Unsuspecting Clients Might be Victims of Trafficking and What You Can Do from 12 to 1:40 p.m.

Human trafficking is far more prevalent than most people believe, and it is taking place every day in the State of New Jersey. Due to New Jersey’s dense population and prominent location along the Interstate 95 corridor, our State is considered particularly vulnerable to the proliferation of human trafficking.

In the first 2 months of 2022 alone, law enforcement arrested 22 individuals in Bergen County who were running a sex trafficking ring involving 50 women, and reaching Hudson, Middlesex and Passaic Counties, and a 3-person ring in Cherry Hill, focused specifically on child trafficking. In 2021, law enforcement raided a labor trafficking ring run out of a Hindu temple in Robbinsville that ended up encompassing 5 states. And the prevalence of Human Trafficking has significantly increased during the pandemic, with more people interacting via the internet.

In response, the New Jersey legislature passed a law in 2013, providing for vacatur of criminal convictions for people who are subjected to Human Trafficking. In 2022, this law was expanded beyond the crime of prostitution to include all crimes, except murder, manslaughter, aggravated manslaughter, kidnapping, luring, or enticing a child and sexual assault.

Lawyers are often the first to receive a call from a survivor, but the individuals themselves may not even know that they are being trafficked. They may be calling about a dispute over wages, for assistance with immigration status or because they have just been arrested for a crime. Lawyers of all practice areas must know the signs and what to look for in order to truly and effectively help their clients. In addition, lawyers can join the fight, and assist survivors in rebuilding their lives by volunteering to take on vacatur cases.

Join us for an unforgettable program that is a CLE seminar and a call to action.

FACULTY
Moderator/Speaker:
Michelle Stegmann, Esq.
Operating Council Member, NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking and Human Trafficking Vacatur Volunteer with Volunteer Lawyers for Justice

Speakers:
Kate Brown, Esq.
Solow, Hartnett and Galvan, LLC, Philadelphia
Joanna Gardner, Esq.
Staff Attorney
Domestic Violence Initiative
HIAS Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
Lauren W. Herman, Esq.
Legal Director
Make the Road New Jersey, Elizabeth
Jessica Kitson
Managing Attorney
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice, Newark
Penny M. Venetis
Director, International Human Rights Clinic
Distinguished Clinical Professor of Law
Judge Dickinson R. Debevoise Scholar
Rutgers Law School, Newark

In this session, you will:
• Learn the difference between sex trafficking and labor trafficking.
• Learn how to spot the red flags/signs of human trafficking, and what to do when you see them.
• Hear from experts as to their experiences working with/identifying human trafficking survivors.
• Gain knowledge on the specifics of the new 2022 law that expands the crimes that can be vacated/expunged from a survivor’s record.
• Find out how you can volunteer and make a difference in the endeavor to stop human trafficking in New Jersey.

CLE Credits:
NJ CLE information: This program has been approved by the Board on Continuing Legal Education of the Supreme Court of New Jersey for 2.0 hours of total CLE credit.
NJ CLE: This program has been approved for 2.0 credits (50 minute hour)
PA CLE: 1.5 substantive credits pending ($8 fee – separate check payable to NJICLE must be submitted at the end of the program)
NY CLE (t&nt): 2.0 professional practice credits

The tuition for NJSBA members is $99. The general tuition is $125.

Click here to register for Webcast- Human Trafficking in New Jersey – Why Your Unsuspecting Clients Might be Victims of Trafficking and What You Can Do.

For questions or to register by phone, please contact an association representative at 732-214-8500, or by email at [email protected].

All the best,
Barb

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Barbara Straczynski
Director of New Media and Promotions
New Jersey State Bar Association
New Brunswick NJ
(732) 937-7524
[email protected]
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