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Judge vs. Magistrate: Know the Difference

Shumaila Saeed
By Shumaila Saeed || Updated on December 25, 2023
Judge is an official appointed to decide cases in a court of law. Magistrate is a judicial officer with limited authority for minor offenses and civil matters.
Judge vs. Magistrate

Key Differences

A judge is a key figure in the legal system, presiding over court proceedings and making decisions based on law and evidence. In contrast, a magistrate typically handles less serious matters, such as minor criminal offenses and civil disputes.
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Judges often serve in higher courts, like district or supreme courts, dealing with complex legal issues. Magistrates usually operate in lower courts, focusing on preliminary hearings, bail matters, and small claims.
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The role of a judge is pivotal in high-stake cases, including felonies and significant civil lawsuits. Conversely, magistrates often manage traffic violations, small-scale civil cases, and preliminary legal processes.
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Judges are usually required to have extensive legal experience and qualifications. Magistrates, while knowledgeable in law, may not always possess the same level of legal education or experience as judges.
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In many jurisdictions, judges are appointed or elected to their positions, reflecting their senior status in the judiciary. Magistrates are often appointed and serve in a more limited or localized judicial capacity.
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Comparison Chart

Court Level

Higher courts (District, Supreme).
Lower courts (Local, Municipal).
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Case Complexity

Handles complex, serious cases.
Deals with minor offenses, civil disputes.
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Legal Authority

Broad judicial authority.
Limited jurisdiction and authority.
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Qualifications

Higher legal qualifications and experience.
May have less extensive legal qualifications.
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Role Scope

Presides over trials, gives verdicts in major cases.
Manages preliminary hearings, small claims, bail matters.
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Judge and Magistrate Definitions

Judge

An official authorized to decide legal matters in court.
The judge listened attentively before delivering the verdict.
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Nov 13, 2023

Magistrate

An official with limited judicial authority.
The magistrate presided over the small claims court.
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Nov 13, 2023

Judge

A person who arbitrates in competitions or disputes.
As a judge in the contest, she was impartial and fair.
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Nov 13, 2023

Magistrate

A judicial officer dealing with minor legal cases.
The magistrate issued a fine for the traffic violation.
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Nov 13, 2023

Judge

An individual who makes informed decisions or opinions.
He acted as a judge of taste in the art exhibition.
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Magistrate

A local civil officer administering the law.
The magistrate handled the preliminary hearing efficiently.
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Nov 13, 2023

Judge

A legal expert who oversees court proceedings.
The judge ruled on the objection during the trial.
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Nov 13, 2023

Magistrate

A lower-ranking judicial figure.
The magistrate settled the dispute between the neighbors.
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Judge

A figure of authority in the judicial system.
The judge was respected for his wisdom and fairness.
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Nov 13, 2023

Magistrate

A judge or justice of a local or inferior court; a justice of the peace.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To form an opinion or estimation of after careful consideration
Judge heights.
Judging character.
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Magistrate

A judge in a court having jurisdiction over the trial of misdemeanors and preliminary hearings involving felonies.
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Judge

(Law) To hear and decide on in a court of law
Judge a case.
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Oct 19, 2023

Magistrate

A public official with the chief administrative power in a district or region.
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Judge

To pass sentence on; condemn.
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Magistrate

(legal) A judicial officer with limited authority to administer and enforce the law. A magistrate's court may have jurisdiction in civil or criminal cases, or both.
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Judge

To act as one appointed to decide the winners of
Judge an essay contest.
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Magistrate

(historical) A high official of the state or a municipality in ancient Greece or Rome.
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Judge

To determine or declare after consideration or deliberation
Most people judged him negligent in performing his duties as a parent.
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Magistrate

A comparable official in medieval or modern institutions.
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Judge

(Informal) To have as an opinion or assumption; suppose
I judge you're right.
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Magistrate

(Quebec) A master's degree.
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Judge

(Bible) To govern; rule. Used of an ancient Israelite leader.
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Magistrate

A person clothed with power as a public civil officer; a public civil officer invested with the executive government, or some branch of it.
Of magistrates some also are supreme, in whom the sovereign power of the state resides; others are subordinate.
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Judge

To form an opinion or evaluation.
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Magistrate

A public official authorized to decide questions bought before a court of justice
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Judge

To act or decide as a judge.
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Magistrate

An officer with jurisdiction over minor offenses.
The magistrate decided on bail for the minor offense.
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Nov 13, 2023

Judge

One who makes estimates as to worth, quality, or fitness
A good judge of used cars.
A poor judge of character.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

(Law) A public official who hears and decides cases brought in court.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

(Law) A public official who hears and decides cases or matters in a forum other than a court, such as an administrative proceeding.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

One appointed to decide the winners of a contest or competition.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

A leader of the Israelites during a period of about 400 years between the death of Joshua and the accession of Saul.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

Judges (used with a sing. verb) See Table at Bible.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

A public official whose duty it is to administer the law, especially by presiding over trials and rendering judgments; a justice.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

A person who decides the fate of someone or something that has been called into question.
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Judge

A person officiating at a sports event, a contest, or similar.
At a boxing match, the decision of the judges is final.
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Judge

A person who evaluates something or forms an opinion.
She is a good judge of wine.
They say he is a poor judge of character considering all the unreliable friends he has made.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

A shophet, a temporary leader appointed in times of crisis in ancient Israel.
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Judge

(transitive) To sit in judgment on; to pass sentence on (a person or matter).
A higher power will judge you after you are dead.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

(intransitive) To sit in judgment, to act as judge.
Justices in this country judge without appeal.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

(transitive) To judicially rule or determine.
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Judge

To sentence to punishment, to judicially condemn.
He was judged to die for his crimes.
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Judge

To award judicially; to adjudge.
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Judge

(transitive) To form an opinion on; to appraise.
I judge a man’s character by the cut of his suit.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To constitute a fitting appraisal or criterion of; to provide a basis for forming an opinion on.
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Judge

(intransitive) To arbitrate; to pass opinion on something, especially to settle a dispute etc.
We cannot both be right: you must judge between us.
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Judge

(transitive) To have as an opinion; to consider, suppose.
I judge it safe to leave the house once again.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

(ambitransitive) To form an opinion; to infer.
I judge from the sky that it might rain later.
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Judge

(ambitransitive) To criticize or label another person or thing.
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Judge

(ambitransitive) To govern as biblical judge or shophet (over some jurisdiction).
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Judge

A public officer who is invested with authority to hear and determine litigated causes, and to administer justice between parties in courts held for that purpose.
The parts of a judge in hearing are four: to direct the evidence; to moderate length, repetition, or impertinency of speech; to recapitulate, select, and collate the material points of that which hath been said; and to give the rule or sentence.
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Judge

One who has skill, knowledge, or experience, sufficient to decide on the merits of a question, or on the quality or value of anything; one who discerns properties or relations with skill and readiness; a connoisseur; an expert; a critic.
A man who is no judge of law may be a good judge of poetry, or eloquence, or of the merits of a painting.
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Judge

A person appointed to decide in a trial of skill, speed, etc., between two or more parties; an umpire; as, a judge in a horse race.
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Judge

One of the supreme magistrates, with both civil and military powers, who governed Israel for more than four hundred years.
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Judge

The title of the seventh book of the Old Testament; the Book of Judges.
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Judge

To hear and determine, as in causes on trial; to decide as a judge; to give judgment; to pass sentence.
The Lord judge between thee and me.
Father, who art judgeOf all things made, and judgest only right!
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To compare facts or ideas, and perceive their relations and attributes, and thus distinguish truth from falsehood; to determine; to discern; to distinguish; to form an opinion about.
Judge not according to the appearance.
She is wise if I can judge of her.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To hear and determine by authority, as a case before a court, or a controversy between two parties.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To examine and pass sentence on; to try; to doom.
God shall judge the righteous and the wicked.
To bring my whole cause 'fore his holiness,And to be judged by him.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To arrogate judicial authority over; to sit in judgment upon; to be censorious toward.
Judge not, that ye be not judged.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To determine upon or deliberation; to esteem; to think; to reckon.
If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

To exercise the functions of a magistrate over; to govern.
Make us a king to judge us.
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

A public official authorized to decide questions bought before a court of justice
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Judge

An authority who is able to estimate worth or quality
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

Determine the result of (a competition)
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

Form an opinion of or pass judgment on;
I cannot judge some works of modern art
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

Judge tentatively or form an estimate of (quantities or time);
I estimate this chicken to weigh three pounds
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Oct 19, 2023

Judge

Pronounce judgment on;
They labeled him unfit to work here
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Judge

Put on trial or hear a case and sit as the judge at the trial of;
The football star was tried for the murder of his wife
The judge tried both father and son in separate trials
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Repeatedly Asked Queries

How is a judge appointed?

Judges are typically appointed or elected, depending on the jurisdiction.
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Nov 17, 2023

What is a judge?

A judge is a legal official with authority to hear and decide cases in a court.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 17, 2023

What is a magistrate?

A magistrate is a judicial officer with limited authority, handling minor legal matters.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 17, 2023

Are judges involved in criminal cases?

Yes, judges handle criminal cases, especially serious or complex ones.
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Nov 17, 2023

Are magistrates involved in jury trials?

Magistrates rarely preside over jury trials, which are usually handled by judges.
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Nov 17, 2023

Can magistrates issue warrants?

Magistrates can issue warrants, primarily in minor legal cases.
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Nov 17, 2023

Are judges involved in appellate cases?

Judges, particularly in higher courts, are involved in appellate cases.
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Nov 17, 2023

Is legal training required for magistrates?

Magistrates usually have legal training, but it may be less extensive than that of judges.
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Can judges make law?

Judges interpret and apply the law but do not make laws.
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Nov 17, 2023

What types of cases do magistrates oversee?

Magistrates often oversee minor offenses, civil disputes, and preliminary matters.
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Nov 17, 2023

What court does a judge preside over?

Judges preside over higher courts like district or supreme courts.
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Nov 17, 2023

Can magistrates conduct legal marriages?

In some jurisdictions, magistrates have the authority to conduct legal marriages.
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Nov 17, 2023

Can a magistrate sentence someone to prison?

Magistrates can impose sentences, but usually for less serious offenses with shorter terms.
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Nov 17, 2023

Do judges have higher authority than magistrates?

Yes, judges generally have higher authority and handle more significant legal matters.
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Nov 17, 2023

Is the role of a judge different in civil and criminal cases?

While the basic role remains the same, the specifics can vary between civil and criminal cases.
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Nov 17, 2023

What is the role of a judge in a trial?

A judge's role in a trial includes overseeing proceedings, ensuring legal compliance, and often deciding the verdict.
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Nov 17, 2023

Do magistrates deal with bail issues?

Magistrates often handle bail matters, especially in preliminary hearings.
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Nov 17, 2023

Can a magistrate's decision be appealed?

Yes, decisions made by a magistrate can often be appealed to a higher court.
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Nov 17, 2023

Do magistrates handle family law cases?

Magistrates can handle certain aspects of family law, especially in local jurisdictions.
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Nov 17, 2023

How long does a judge serve?

The tenure of a judge varies, often depending on the appointment, election, and specific laws.
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Nov 17, 2023

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About Author
Shumaila Saeed
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Shumaila Saeed
Shumaila Saeed, an expert content creator with 6 years of experience, specializes in distilling complex topics into easily digestible comparisons, shining a light on the nuances that both inform and educate readers with clarity and accuracy.

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