ABSTRACT
The conventional, abstract image of judicial authority in an adversarial legal system casts the judicial officer as an impersonal, objective and detached adjudicator. Impartiality is upheld as a core legal value, essential for judicial legitimacy. Emotion is disavowed as inconsistent with the rationality central to judicial practice. However, impartiality and emotion are not mutually exclusive. Drawing on empirical research, in particular in-depth interviews, this chapter highlights the work practices judicial officers undertake to manage emotion – theirs and others’ – while simultaneously remaining committed to the ideal of impartial adjudication.
