A Typical Day

Judges usually spend around 5-7 hours in court per day. When they aren’t in court they are usually preparing for an upcoming case through research or preparing and reading legal documents for ongoing cases. During the day we left the courtroom numerous times to go to the judge’s chambers or other meeting rooms.

Top 3 Perks

1) Rewarding work for the community
2) Prestigious title
3) Pension plans

Job Culture

Working by yourself, always indoors, working at a desk, lots of reading, emotionally draining, being alert and attentive all the time, good interaction with other judges in the chambers.

My Experience

Being a judge requires the highest order of commitment to your community. It isn’t a position to be taken lightly and it was an honor to job shadow Justice Clark. The day began by entering the building through the judges’ entrance which was a nice touch since it would be annoying and dangerous for the judges to enter with the general public. Then Justice Clark and I went to his chambers to get prepared for a 9:00 AM start. He has his own washroom and dressing room in his chambers, which is pretty awesome.  We then headed down to court that usually starts at 10:00 AM, but Justice Clark wanted to start early to make sure both sides had time to present their arguments without being rushed. One misunderstanding is that people think judges are mean people, but they are not. If anything judges are the nicest and most honorable people in society. They have to be stoic and serious in the courtroom due to the serious nature of their work, but they are regular guys/girls that like to joke around too, trust me ;) . You would think there is just a lot of sitting around but there was a surprising amount of walking back and forth.

Many cases were handled that day and Justice Clark sentenced a few people to jail for short periods of time. Justice Clark says that he never second guesses his decisions because in order for him to make decisions the evidence has to be concrete and unquestionable. However, being a judge will impose on your lifestyle. Justice Clark is always busy with his work (at home too) and he says his job is equivalent to school. He collects facts, reads different sources, and combines them into a decision, similar to an essay.

To be a judge you really have to be into your job. You have to be very alert all the time, especially in court. You have to be very passionate, well learned, and want to save the world through justice.

 

Requirements

1) Undergraduate degree
2) Write LSAT and graduate law school
3) Practice law for at least 10 years
4) Apply to become a judge and hope you get the position
TIP: Crown/district attorneys have a better chance of becoming judges (at the courthouse I visited only 2 out of 20+ judges were defense attorneys prior to being judges)

Skills Needed

Analytical skills, communication skills, sensitivity, quick on your feet, judgment and decision making, thick skin, deductive reasoning, problem solving, monitoring other’s behaviors

The Field

-  Declining crime rates are offset by population increases so there is a steady flow of cases.
-  Technology has made an impact in the courtroom (computers).
-  Judges have very secure jobs unless they do something illegal