Courage, fortitude and flexibility are essential qualities that make up the backbone of all judiciaries, writes Justice Joseph P Nadeau* In the United States, 1 May each year is celebrated as "Law Day." It is a day designated to remind us of the importance of the rule of law in this country. During the first week in May, judges and lawyers visit classrooms all over their state to talk with students about the American system of justice. Many continue such meetings throughout the year. During 37 years as a judge in New Hampshire, students have asked me many questions, including: Why did you become a judge? How are judges selected? How do judges make decisions? When I was chief justice of the Superior Court, though, I was stunned when a young student asked me, "What does it mean to be a judge?" As often as I have spoken in classrooms, at service clubs and to civic organisations, I have never been asked that question. Fascinated by its simplicity and haunted by its depth, I thought Law Day an ideal time to try to frame an answer. Actually, there are many answers. Perhaps first and foremost, being a judge means trusting your instincts and following them. The hard decisions a trial judge makes are made in solitude. There are no fellow committee members, no debate and consensus, no advisors and polltakers. Judges cannot leave decisions to others. They must use mind, intellect and heart to weigh competing interests, analyze the law, decide on the facts and search for a just conclusion. Law clerks can help research, word processors can help organise, but each trial judge makes each decision alone. Being a judge means having confidence without conceit, decisiveness without arrogance and passion without pretension. It means remembering where you came from and knowing who you are. It means being aware of the conditions and circumstances under which the people who come before you live and act. Being a judge means using common sense as well as the law to handle problems, problems that sometimes seem impossible to solve. It means applying legal training and professional skills without becoming an advocate. It means being even-handed at all times. A black robe does not cloak a judge in wisdom, understanding or compassion. Those characteristics each person must bring to the bench and continuously work to strengthen. With the robe, however, comes the responsibility to make difficult choices without fear or favour, along with the responsibility to treat everyone fairly and impartially, and to seek justice and do justice. Being a judge means being temperate under circumstances that at times would try the patience of the most serene. It means being respectful to those who show no respect. It means being civil to those who are uncivil. It means using awesome judicial power sparingly and with restraint. It means all this and more. Being a judge means being open-minded in every case. It means being strong enough to ignore momentary public sentiment on one side or the other. It means accepting criticism, justified or unjustified, without always being able to respond. It means understanding that there will usually be someone unhappy with your decisions. It means knowing that even when you are right others may disagree with your decisions or even resent them. While the salary for judging is less than for comparable work in the private sector, being a judge means working for more than just financial compensation. It means finding satisfaction and reward in resolving difficult issues by the application of legal skills, intellectual faculties and creative energies. It means welcoming the opportunity to serve the public to have a positive impact on people's lives. It means accepting the task of explaining the judicial process, which is sometimes hard to understand, and confronting adverse attitudes that are sometimes hard to overcome. Being a judge means not being afraid to make mistakes. Because humans rarely achieve perfection, the courage to decide brings the risk of error. Being a judge also means having confidence in the system. Confidence that mistakes can be corrected and that justice is attainable. Being a judge means accepting the responsibility to represent the justice system to our very best; to exhibit patience, tolerance and understanding. It means recognising that judicial independence does not justify the abuse of power. Being a judge means following the law, applying the constitution and protecting rights even under the most trying and outrageous circumstances. It means recognising that the great principles upon which America country was founded and endures apply not just to the best of us, not just to the worst of us, but to all of us. Being a judge means providing a safeguard for individual rights and a responsible forum in which constitutional principles and changing concepts can be examined and balanced. Being a judge means acknowledging the impact of progress as well as the importance of precedent. The framers of the constitution knew it would be amended from time to time as the democratic experiment unfolded. They knew it would be interpreted and applied based on future events. Judges must have this same vision. Judges must see the present through the lens of the past but view it with an eye to the future. Being a judge means being conservative: not a conservatism of cynicism and inertia but of optimism and vitality. It means being liberal: not a liberalism of permissiveness and destruction but of openness and innovation. Being a judge means all these things. Mostly, though, it means being yourself and making sure that is enough. * The writer is senior associate justice, New Hampshire Supreme Court (Ret.). This statement was delivered to the conference on "Promoting the Role of the Judiciary in the Middle East and North Africa Region" held in Amman, 27-29 June 2006. Permission of the author to publish the statement in Beyond was obtained.
