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Officer of the court

 

 
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Officer of the court
 
 
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The generic term officer of the court applies to all those who, in some degree in function of their professional or similar qualifications, have a legal part—and hence legal and deontological obligations—in the complex functioning of the judicial system as a whole, in order to forge justice out of the application of the law and the simultaneous pursuit of the legitimate interests of all parties and the general good of society.

They can be divided into the following functional groups; in most case various synonyms and parallels exist as well as a plethora of operational variations, depending on the jurisdiction and the changes in relevant legislation:








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The generic term officer of the court applies to all those who, in some degree in function of their professional or similar qualifications, have a legal part—and hence legal and deontological obligations—in the complex functioning of the judicial system as a whole, in order to forge justice out of the application of the law and the simultaneous pursuit of the legitimate interests of all parties and the general good of society.

They can be divided into the following functional groups; in most case various synonyms and parallels exist as well as a plethora of operational variations, depending on the jurisdiction and the changes in relevant legislation:

Court proper

Foremost those who make the decisions that determine the course of justice and its outcome:
  • judge
    Judge

    A judge, or arbiter of justice, is a lead official who presides over a court of law,which is operated by the local, state, and/or federal government....
    s, magistrate
    Magistrate

    A magistrate is a judicial officer; in ancient Rome, the word magistratus denoted one of the highest government officers with judicial and executive powers....
    s and arbitrators
  • jury
    Jury

    A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render a rationalism, impartiality verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a sentence or judgment....
    , the only party without mandatory legal training, but only acting collectively
  • prosecutor
    Prosecutor

    The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the Civil law inquisitorial system....
    s


Investigation and expertise

These are, like the accidental witness, though not in chief of accidental access to relevant information but through their skills, experience and equipment, used to provide information to the actual decision makers above
  • coroner
    Coroner

    A coroner or forensics examiner is an official responsible for investigating deaths, particularly some of those happening under unusual circumstances, and determining the cause of death....
    s, medical examiners, and other medical experts
  • other judicial experts in various fields, such as
    • amicus curiae
      Amicus curiae

      Amicus curiae or amicus curi? is a legal Latin phrase, literally translated as "friend of the court", that refers to someone, not a party to a case, who volunteers to offer information on a point of law or some other aspect of the case to assist the court in deciding a matter before it....
       is a vague term for other persons consulted by the court
    • marshall
      Marshall

      Marshall may refer to:*"Marshall", an American spelling for the military rank of marshal*Marshall *Marshall Aerospace, an aerospace contractor based in Cambridge, England...
      , sheriff
      Sheriff

      A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
      , constable
      Constable

      A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in Police. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions....
  • bail bondsmen
    Bail bondsman

    A bail bond agent, or bondsman, is any person or corporation which will act as a surety and pledge money or property as bail for the appearance of a Crime defendant in court....


Services to the parties

  • Attorneys
  • Bail bondsmen
    Bail bondsman

    A bail bond agent, or bondsman, is any person or corporation which will act as a surety and pledge money or property as bail for the appearance of a Crime defendant in court....
    , who may however undertake action to capture an absconding client
  • Interpreters
    Interpreting

    Language interpreting or interpretation is the intellectual activity of facilitating oral and sign-language communication, either simultaneously or consecutively, between two or more users of different languages....
    /translators
    Translation

    Translation is the hermeneutics of the Meaning of a text and the subsequent production of an Dynamic and formal equivalence text, likewise called a "translation," that communicates the same message in another language....
     are not generally considered officers of the court, although they do render their services to the parties in the interests of the court proceedings. However, there are exceptions where interpreters may be employed on a permanent basis by courts to act as interpreters when called upon, e.g. International Court of Justice
    International Court of Justice

    The International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands....
     and the European Court of Justice
    European Court of Justice

    The Court of Justice of the European Communities, usually called the European Court of Justice , is the Supreme court of the European Union ....
    . In some jurisdictions court interpreters may also be deemed as officers of the court pro tempore
    Pro tempore

    Pro tempore or pro tem is a List of Latin phrases which best translates to "for the time being" in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a locum tenens in the absence of a superior, such as the President pro tempore of the United States Senate....
    . Court interpreters and translators have an absolute ethical duty to tell judges the truth and avoid evasion.
  • Court Appointed Special Advocate
    Court Appointed Special Advocate

    Court Appointed Special Advocate is a national association in the United States that supports and promotes court-appointed advocates for abused or neglected children in order to provide children with a safe and healthy environment in permanent homes....
    s in some jurisdictions are considered officers of the court.
  • Process servers
    Service of process

    Service of process is the procedure employed to give legal notice to a person of a court or administrative agency body's exercise of its jurisdiction over that person so as to enable that person to respond to the proceeding before the court, body or other tribunal....
     carry out service of process
    Service of process

    Service of process is the procedure employed to give legal notice to a person of a court or administrative agency body's exercise of its jurisdiction over that person so as to enable that person to respond to the proceeding before the court, body or other tribunal....
    . In some jurisdictions they are appointed by a court and are considered appointed officers of the court.


Sources and References