In general, wiretap statutes come in one of two basic types: one party consent laws and all party consent laws. Under a one party consent law, if the person recording is either a participant in the conversation or has the consent of at least one party to the conversation, then the recording will not violate the wiretap law. Both federal law and NJ law have one party consent statutes. Some states, however, require that all parties to a conversation must consent to the recording in order to avoid violating the wiretap laws.
Exceptions to the wire tap laws are usually made for recording things that are not private (e.g. recording a city council meeting open to the public, speeches at a public rally, etc.) or where it is obvious that the recording is taking place. Also, of course, law enforcement may record without the consent of any party if the officers have obtained the necessary warrant.

