A judge’s career is centered around court room procedures and out of court administrative work. Judges are typically attorneys before they apply or are elected to be a judge. Becoming a judge may be considered by those in legal practice as the highest level of achievement in the field. However, attaining judgeship requires the relevant education in law and years of work experience.
Remunerations
Most judges enjoy an attractive salary plus benefits. According to Salary.com, the average salary for a judge in the U.S. is $146,238. This salary is generally higher than the average received by others in legal careers such as attorneys and court clerks. Judges often receive life and health insurance, pension and retirement plans as well as vacation and sick leave compensation.
Professional and Personal Development
A legal career can be professionally and intellectually challenging. A judge typically engages in a wide range of research from which she gains a lot of knowledge. The judge also gains skills in communication and critical thinking due to the nature of her work. A judge’s career also provides a sense of civic honor as judges defend human rights and promote justice in society.
Workload
Judge’s have myriad responsibilities inside and outside the court room. Inside the court room a judge spends long periods of time presiding over trials and making decisions. Outside the court room he is engaged in administrative works such as undertaking research, writing legal opinions, reading lawyer’s briefs, instructing juries and overseeing some court staff. Judges generally work 40 to 50 hours per week.
Wide Range of Legal Areas
Although judges can be specialists in certain areas of the law, they often oversee different trials that have different legal proceedings. They may handle both civic and criminal law cases that range from small claims cases to murder. Mastery of the diverse laws and legal procedures is required for a judge to make fair decisions. It can be stressful to master and amicably apply such diverse laws at any given time.
Relinquishing Other Activities
Judges are usually required to refrain from engaging in other business interests. This is to ensure that the judge remains fair and non-committal to business partners or political allies. Even though this prevents a conflict of interest, it invariably limits the judge in what he can or cannot participate in.