Assessor (law)

In some jurisdictions, an assessor is a judge's or magistrate's assistant. This is the historical meaning of this word.

In common law jurisdictions, assessors are usually non-lawyers who sit together with a judge to provide either expert advice (such as on maritime matters) or guidance on local practices. The use of assessors nowadays is quite rare. In some jurisdictions, such as Fiji, assessors are used in place of juries. An assessor's opinion or view of a case is not binding on a judge.

In Denmark, it was the former title given to Supreme Court judges. Today the title is given to Deputy Judges. See Courts of Denmark.

In Germany, Rechtsassessor ("assessor of law") is a title held by graduates of law who have passed both the first and the second of the two state exams (finishing law school and "the bar") qualifying for a career in a legal profession such as judge or prosecutor, attorney at law or notary public.

In Italy, an assessor (in Italian: assessore) is a member of a Giunta, the executive body in all levels of local government: regions, provinces and communes.

In Norway, the title was used for any judge before 1927.

In Sweden, a judge who has been a district court clerk for two years, an appeal court clerk for at least one year, a deputy district judge for at least two years and a deputy appeal court judge for one year gets, if he or she is approved, the title assessor. Hovrättsassessor = assessor of the civil and criminal appeal court. Kammarrättsassessor = assessor of the administrative appeal court. Having the degree of assessor is the most common way of getting a constitutionally protected position as a judge (ordinarie domare), but increasingly advocates, prosecutors and doctors of law are also appointed to these positions.

In the former Soviet Union and modern People's Republic of China, a judge presiding at trial is assisted by two "people's assessors" drawn much like jurors from citizens in the community. They do not rule on matters of law but can allow or deny objections. When the trial is completed the judge and people's assessors decide on a verdict.

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