magistrate Hear it!

magistrate Definition

mag·is·trate (-trāt′, -trit)

noun

  1. a civil officer empowered to administer the law: the President of the U.S. is sometimes called chief magistrate
  2. a minor official with limited judicial powers, as a justice of the peace or judge of a police court

Etymology: ME < L magistratus < magister, master

magistrate Related Forms

mag′·is·trate′·ship′ noun mag′·is·trat′i·cal (-trat′i kəl) adjective

magistrate Synonyms

magistrate

n.

justice, officer, police judge; see judge 1.

magistrate Law Definition

n

A judicial officer of limited jurisdiction or responsibility; colloquially used as a synonym for judge.

magistrate Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • preside: Sadly, Mr Galland's fate is likely to hinge on whether or not the presiding magistrate ever rolled a spliff in his youth.
  • lay: Lay magistrates sit together in a row facing the rest of the people.
  • lie: Over 95 % of all criminal cases are dealt with by lay magistrates.
  • convict: In order to remove a summary conviction, it was necessary to serve notice both on the convicting magistrate and on the informer.
  • appoint: A keen trade unionist, in 1932 Smewin was appointed a magistrate.
  • accuse: Defense attorney Barros accused the magistrate of wanting " to leave the case with a display of fireworks.

Converse of subject

impose: There were concerns about the low level of fines imposed by magistrates ' courts.

Adjective modifier

  • stipendiary: It was thought that trial by jury or by a stipendiary magistrate would be a more satisfactory mode of trial.
  • supreme: It has been pretended, that this republic of kings was moderated by a general council and a supreme magistrate.
  • chief: But the chief magistrate and his colleagues were not deterred from doing their duty.
  • civil: The lieutenant-governor soon came into the town house and there met some of his Majesty's Council and a number of civil magistrates.
  • resident: Power of resident magistrate to order dead body to be removed to mortuary or buried forthwith.

Modifies a noun

  • reconvene: The application is expected to be one of the first to be heard when magistrates reconvene.
  • court: Magistrates Courts can only commit your opponent to prison for up to 2 months.

Noun used with modifier

  • county: A county shall have a county government headed by a county magistrate who shall be elected by the people of the said county.
  • resident: During a brief two minute hearing before resident magistrate Ken Nixon Mr Rush spoke only once to confirm he understood the charge.
  • boro: Prior to this most prisons were owned and controlled locally by both county and boro magistrates.

Possessives

  • court: The average cost of a case in the magistrates ' court in 2002/03 was £ 515.
  • bench: Then the governor comes down to sit on the magistrate's bench.
  • committee: The role of the justices ' clerk in the new structures is a key issue facing magistrates ' courts committees.