A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. In an adversarial system the judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility and arguments of the parties, and then issues a ruling in the case based on their interpretation of the law and their own personal judgment. A judge is expected to conduct the trial impartially and, typically, in an open court.
Judges at the International Court of Justice
17th century Spanish judge in full gowns, by Velázquez
These drawings were taken from life in 1758. From left to right, top row: 1. Interpreter, Rhowangee Sewagee. 2. Judge of the Hindoo Law, Antoba Crustnagee Pundit. 3. Hindoo Officer, Lellather Chatta Bhutt. From left to right, bottom row: 4. Officer to the Mooremen, Mahmoud Ackram of the Codjee order or priesthood of the cast of Moormens. 5. Judge of the Mohomedan Law, Cajee Husson. 6. Haveldar, or summoning Officer, Mahmound Ismael'.
Róbert Ragnar Spanó, president of the European Court of Human Rights
A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law. In both common law and civil law legal systems, courts are the central means for dispute resolution, and it is generally understood that all people have an ability to bring their claims before a court. Similarly, the rights of those accused of a crime include the right to present a defense before a court.
A trial at the Old Bailey in London as drawn by Thomas Rowlandson and Augustus Pugin for Microcosm of London (1808–11)
The International Court of Justice
The building of the Supreme Court of Estonia in Tartu
The Court House of Kavala, Greece
