Judge is a person who hears and decides legal disputes in a court of law. The powers, functions, method of appointment, and discipline of judges vary widely across jurisdictions. Judges may be members of trial courts, appeals courts, supreme courts, or other tribunals. They are tasked with enforcing courtroom decorum, resolving disputes between parties or their legal representatives, and interpreting and applying the law to particular cases. They also write decisions, or judgments, that clarify the law’s reasoning and serve as legal precedent for other cases in the future.
A good judge will display the traits of compassion, patience, fairness, open-mindedness, courtesy and tact, and courage. They will have the intelligence to parse complex issues and a desire to continue learning and supplementing their knowledge of the law. They will not be prone to making mistakes or giving into pressure from the party in a case or the lawyers representing that party. Judges should be able to recognize their biases and understand how their actions can impact the case and other parties involved in the case.
A judge’s temperament will interact with the specific parameters of their work and the cultures (both courthouse and community) within which it is embedded to produce behaviors. Certain traits, such as extraversion and agreeableness, are more likely to promote desired judicial behaviors, while others, like positive emotionality, could hinder them. Having a strong combination of these traits will help judges perform their duties more effectively and contribute to the public’s trust in the judiciary.
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