Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Judicature
Publication Date
2021
ISSN
0022-5800
Page Number
48
Keywords
judges, judicial temperament, behavioral traits, propriety
Disciplines
Judges | Law
Abstract
Why do we care about judicial temperament? The basic logic is that temperament is an underlying factor that produces behaviors, some desired and some not. The behaviors most often cited as evidence of a good temperament — displays of courtesy, patience, level-headedness, and caring — are desirable because they advance procedural justice. They make litigants, attorneys, and the public feel heard and understood, foster respect for the courts, and — when displayed to fellow judges — advance collegiality. In contrast, the behaviors most often cited as evidence of a poor temperament — outsized or misplaced anger displays, discourtesy, impatience, and callousness — foster feelings of alienation from and distrust of the courts, and create acrimony within them. One underlying principle, then, is that judicial temperament — whatever it is — is a causal force driving productive or destructive behaviors in the daily work of judging.
Recommended Citation
Terry Maroney,
Judicial Temperament Explained, 105 Judicature. 48
(2021)
Available at: https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/faculty-publications/1221