Judge	An Interview with Judge Cohen

Overview: This can be just the job for you. If you do some of the things I say you just might be livin’ large. Here is what the job looks like and maybe this will help you choose your career. Judges work on a variety of hearings from ever aspect of society, from traffic offenses, to disputes over management of professional sports, to the rights of huge corporations, to disconnecting life support for terminally ill people. Judges must not take sides and must only make decisions based on the evidence given. In a criminal case the judge has to decide whether the person serves time in jail, or sets a time for the person to be released. Judges always have to listen to the jury's verdict. This will help the judge decide the sentence. Most judges have a specific jurisdiction. If you were to work for the Federal Government then your jurisdiction is unlimited. Federal and State judges have the power to overrule a decision made by a trial court or administrative law judges if they think that the decision made by this judge or court is wrong. This is an overview of the different issues that judges deal with everyday.
Schooling and qualifications: You need a Bachelor's Degree, a Juris Doctorate degree from a Law School and you need to pass the Bar Exam in the state that you practice law. Most judges have to be a lawyer, depending on the state.  If you are not a lawyer before you become a judge, then you will have a limited jurisdiction.  If you are a lawyer, the job would possibly be easier because  you would have experience in the field. 
Salary Range:The earnings are very good if you do the time. If you are not appointed into one of the higher courts you won't be making as much money as if you were. You can make as little as $19,000.00 a year, or you can be making more than $135,000.00.
Job Opportunities: You can preside in courts in towns, states or federal offices. If you are very ambitious you may aspire to be a Supreme Court judge. However, this position is an appointment from the President of the United States.

 If you are interested in this career you may want to:

• run for the school office
• visit a local court to see what a judge has to do for each case and who he has to deal with
• join a local debate club or discussion club about one topic
• visit the supreme court judge page: http://www.supremecourtus.gov/