Who judges the judges? | Jessica Kerr

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4.1 • 11.9K Ratings

🗓️ 2 June 2021

⏱️ 13 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What qualifies someone to become a judge? The answer is surprisingly vague and even taboo to discuss. Lawyer Jessica Kerr sifts through the murky, mysterious process that sits at the center of the Commonwealth judicial system in countries like Australia -- and makes the case for "judge school," a legal education better fit to bring justice, legitimacy and public trust to any court.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to TED Talks Daily. I'm Elise Hugh.
0:07.2	Judges have so much power. In democracies, they're part of a system we're supposed to trust.
0:12.6	But in today's talk from TEDxUWA in 2020, Australian lawyer and magistrate Jessica Kerr
0:18.8	unpacks the way they're chosen for the bench,
0:21.6	and why that might lead to an unjust system.
0:25.6	You're in a room you don't want to be in.
0:30.6	Something bad has happened.
0:33.6	There's a stranger in a suit with your future in their hands, a judge.
0:40.8	Four years ago, that judge was me.
0:44.7	The people looking up at me then had no choice but to trust me.
0:49.5	But what had I done to deserve it?
0:54.0	Australia's judicial system
0:55.8	operates under a shroud of mystique
0:58.2	which fends off tough questions like this.
1:01.9	But you all have the right to ask
1:04.2	how people like me prepare for the job of judging
1:07.6	and you may not feel comfortable with the answers.
1:12.5	The system needs to change.
1:16.1	To set the scene first, let's think about public confidence.
1:21.7	Judges in Australia are not elected, yet the power they wield is immense.
1:28.3	Ultimately, we trust the system because we believe that judges generally get it right.
1:36.3	If we lose that belief, we risk unbalancing the whole constitution.
	...

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