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class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Bench_Aus.jpg/300px-Bench_Aus.jpg" decoding="async" width="300" height="200" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Bench_Aus.jpg/450px-Bench_Aus.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Bench_Aus.jpg/600px-Bench_Aus.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1024" data-file-height="683" /></a><figcaption>A judge's <b>bench</b> in a courtroom in <a href="/wiki/Beechworth,_Victoria" class="mw-redirect" title="Beechworth, Victoria">Beechworth, Victoria</a>, Australia. The term "bench" is also used as a <a href="/wiki/Metonym" class="mw-redirect" title="Metonym">metonym</a> to mean all the judges of a certain court or members of a judiciary.</figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg/300px-The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg" decoding="async" width="300" height="225" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg/450px-The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg/600px-The_Grand_Bench_of_the_Japanese_Supreme_Court.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1024" data-file-height="768" /></a><figcaption>The <a href="/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_Japan" title="Supreme Court of Japan">Supreme Court of Japan</a> Grand Bench seats 15 justices.</figcaption></figure> <p><b>Bench</b> used in a <a href="/wiki/Law" title="Law">legal</a> context can have several meanings. First, it can simply indicate the location in a <a href="/wiki/Courtroom" title="Courtroom">courtroom</a> where a <a href="/wiki/Judge" title="Judge">judge</a> sits. Second, the term bench is a <a href="/wiki/Metonym" class="mw-redirect" title="Metonym">metonym</a> used to describe members of the <a href="/wiki/Judiciary" title="Judiciary">judiciary</a> collectively,<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> or the judges of a particular court, such as the <a href="/wiki/Court_of_King%27s_Bench_(England)" title="Court of King's Bench (England)">King's Bench</a> or the <a href="/wiki/Common_Bench" class="mw-redirect" title="Common Bench">Common Bench</a> in England and Wales, or the <a href="/wiki/United_States_federal_courts" class="mw-redirect" title="United States federal courts">federal</a> bench in the United States.<sup id="cite_ref-Walker_2-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Walker-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Third, the term is used to differentiate judges, who are referred to as "the bench", from <a href="/wiki/Lawyer" title="Lawyer">attorneys</a> or <a href="/wiki/Barristers" class="mw-redirect" title="Barristers">barristers</a>, who are referred to as "<a href="/wiki/Bar_(law)" title="Bar (law)">the bar</a>". The phrase "bench and bar" denotes all judges and lawyers collectively.<sup id="cite_ref-Walker_2-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Walker-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The term "full bench" is used when all the judges of a certain court sit together to hear a case, as in the phrase "before the full bench", which is also referred to as <span title="French-language text"><i lang="fr"><a href="/wiki/En_banc" title="En banc">en banc</a></i></span>.<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The historical roots of the term come from judges formerly having sat on long seats or <a href="/wiki/Bench_(furniture)" title="Bench (furniture)">benches</a> (freestanding or against a wall) when presiding over a <a href="/wiki/Court" title="Court">court</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Walker_2-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Walker-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The bench is usually an elevated desk area that allows a judge to view, and to be seen by, the entire courtroom. The bench was a typical feature of the courts of the <a href="/wiki/Order_of_St._John" class="mw-redirect" title="Order of St. John">Order of St. John</a> in Malta, such as at the <a href="/wiki/Castellania_(Valletta)" title="Castellania (Valletta)">Castellania</a>, where judges and the nominated College of Advocates sat for court cases and review laws.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Bench_(law)&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Bank#Etymology" title="Bank">Bank</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bar_(law)" title="Bar (law)">Bar (law)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bench_trial" title="Bench trial">Bench trial</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bencher" title="Bencher">Bencher</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/En_banc" title="En banc">En banc</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Full_court" title="Full court">Full court</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Bench_(law)&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-1">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">In Italy, in the law on the conflict between powers, the ordinance drawn by the judge at the bench (...) is the legal system's response to the suffered invasion of his range of power: <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFBuonomo2005" class="citation journal cs1">Buonomo, Giampiero (2005). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120801002834/http://www.questia.com/projects#!/project/89394844">"La Consulta apre alla libertà delle forme e ascolta i giudici che sostituiscono l'ordinanza al ricorso"</a>. <i>Diritto&Giustizia Edizione Online</i>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.questia.com/projects#!/project/89394844">the original</a> on 2012-08-01<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2016-04-07</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Diritto%26Giustizia+Edizione+Online&rft.atitle=La+Consulta+apre+alla+libert%C3%A0+delle+forme+e+ascolta+i+giudici+che+sostituiscono+l%27ordinanza+al+ricorso&rft.date=2005&rft.aulast=Buonomo&rft.aufirst=Giampiero&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.questia.com%2Fprojects%23%21%2Fproject%2F89394844&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ABench+%28law%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Walker-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Walker_2-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Walker_2-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Walker_2-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWalker1980" class="citation book cs1">Walker, David (1980). <span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/oxfordcompaniont0000walk"><i>Oxford Companion to Law</i></a></span>. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/oxfordcompaniont0000walk/page/123">123</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-19-866110-X" title="Special:BookSources/0-19-866110-X"><bdi>0-19-866110-X</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Oxford+Companion+to+Law&rft.place=Oxford&rft.pages=123&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=1980&rft.isbn=0-19-866110-X&rft.aulast=Walker&rft.aufirst=David&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Foxfordcompaniont0000walk&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ABench+%28law%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBlack1990" class="citation book cs1">Black, Henry Campbell (1990). <i>Black's Law Dictionary, 6th ed</i>. St. Paul, Minn.: West Publishing. pp. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/blackslawdiction00henr/page/155">155</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-314-76271-X" title="Special:BookSources/0-314-76271-X"><bdi>0-314-76271-X</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Black%27s+Law+Dictionary%2C+6th+ed.&rft.place=St.+Paul%2C+Minn.&rft.pages=155&rft.pub=West+Publishing&rft.date=1990&rft.isbn=0-314-76271-X&rft.aulast=Black&rft.aufirst=Henry+Campbell&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ABench+%28law%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFHarding1950" class="citation journal cs1">Harding, Hugh W. (1950). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170520111517/http://melitensiawth.com/incoming/Index/Scientia%20%28Malta%29/Scientia.%2016%281950%293%28Jul.-Sept.%29/02.pdf">"Advocates Under the Code de Rohan and the Present Law"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <i>Scientia</i>. <b>3</b> (2): 121. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://melitensiawth.com/incoming/Index/Scientia%20(Malta)/Scientia.%2016(1950)3(Jul.-Sept.)/02.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on 20 May 2017.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Scientia&rft.atitle=Advocates+Under+the+Code+de+Rohan+and+the+Present+Law&rft.volume=3&rft.issue=2&rft.pages=121&rft.date=1950&rft.aulast=Harding&rft.aufirst=Hugh+W.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fmelitensiawth.com%2Fincoming%2FIndex%2FScientia%2520%28Malta%29%2FScientia.%252016%281950%293%28Jul.-Sept.%29%2F02.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ABench+%28law%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Sources">Sources</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Bench_(law)&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Sources"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239549316">.mw-parser-output .refbegin{margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul{margin-left:0}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul>li{margin-left:0;padding-left:3.2em;text-indent:-3.2em}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents ul,.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents ul li{list-style:none}@media(max-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul>li{padding-left:1.6em;text-indent:-1.6em}}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-columns ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .refbegin-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .refbegin{font-size:90%}}</style><div class="refbegin" style=""> <ul><li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBakshi2008" class="citation web cs1">Bakshi, M. A. (April 26, 2008). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.itatonline.org/articles_new/?p=15">"The Art of Writing Judgments"</a>. <i>itatonline.org</i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=itatonline.org&rft.atitle=The+Art+of+Writing+Judgments&rft.date=2008-04-26&rft.aulast=Bakshi&rft.aufirst=M.+A.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.itatonline.org%2Farticles_new%2F%3Fp%3D15&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ABench+%28law%29" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFParikh2008" class="citation web cs1">Parikh, P. P. (April 26, 2008). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.itatonline.org/articles_new/?p=17">"Conduct on and off the Bench"</a>. <i>itatonline.org</i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=itatonline.org&rft.atitle=Conduct+on+and+off+the+Bench&rft.date=2008-04-26&rft.aulast=Parikh&rft.aufirst=P.+P.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.itatonline.org%2Farticles_new%2F%3Fp%3D17&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ABench+%28law%29" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> </div> <div class="navbox-styles"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline 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