Can the plaintiff refuse to have a defendant who has asked for a jury trial in a Landlord/Tenant case of less than the sum allowed in the Small Claims Court. In New Jersey there is a division for Land lord/Tenant cases
A motion can be brought to recuse a judge, yes. Usually if they have some connection to a party or matter they will do this themselves to avoid any appearance of impropriety. Some courts have an 'automatic' change rule at the beginning of a case.
