In contemporary society, a lot of crime incidents happen in various parts of the world. Fair trials and hearings in a courtroom should be established well in order to protect and safeguard the rights of each person in a legal way.
What is a judge?
Judge have crucial task when it comes to safeguarding the person’s legal rights. They are responsible in overseeing various legal proceedings such as trials, hearings and sentencing. Judges have enormous responsibilities to make sure that the legal rights are protected in all stakeholders of the court process.
Duties of a judge
- It is the foremost duty of a judge to make certain that every person who is involved in court proceedings has protected legal rights. If legal proceedings are not set accordingly, it is the task of the judge to rule according to his experiences and wide knowledge regarding the law.
- Whenever a certain case doesn’t merit a jury trial, it is the duty of the judge to create a verdict on particular cases. They are the ones to select possible penalties after their announcement of the verdicts.
- Judges are tasked to supervise offices of their court. They should ensure that all is aspects are running adequately especially in clerical offices of the court. They supervise directly unto clerks and court administrators.
- Judges must know if a certain testimony provided in court is admissible one based on court precedent and allegations. They should also thoroughly examine various evidences that are admitted to the court.
- The job description of a judge differs depending whether they are in a state, federal or county employee. Federal as well as a state judge generally acquires more authority and jurisdiction unto any cases in their respective systems.
Conditions of Work
- Judges work in offices, courtrooms and law libraries. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics in the US, judges work about 40 hours a week and may sometimes exceed up to 50 hours or more.
- Judges have many public appearances. However, some of them may also work hard behind the scenes or in and out of the courthouse.
Educational Requirements
Most of the judges were lawyers at first, according to United States Bureau of Labor Statistics or BLS. Administrative judges in federal must first become lawyers and should successfully pass the exam provided by United States Office of Personnel Management. However, state administrative judge does not require being lawyers. All states are required to have orientation for judges.
Occupation and Progress
- Judges mostly work during morning business hours. While may work a minimum of 40 hours weekly, many of them work for 50 or more.
- The US Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that there will be a steady increase in the demand of judges by 4% on the year 2016. Obtaining a position as a judge enables a person to attain high level of job security.