Where does the judge sit during a trial?

Answer 1

United StatesThe judge generally sits behind a raised desk, known as the bench. Behind the judge are the great seal of the jurisdiction and the flags of the appropriate federal and state governments. Judges usually wear a plain black robe (a requirement in many jurisdictions). An exception was the late U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who broke tradition by adorning his robe with four gold stripes on each sleeve.

Adjacent to the bench are the witness stand and the desks where the court clerk and the court reporter sit. The courtroom is divided into two parts by a barrier known as the bar. The bar may be an actual railing, or an imaginary barrier. The bailiff stands against one wall and keeps order in the courtroom.

On one side is the judge's bench, the tables for the plaintiff, the defendant, and their respective counsel, and a separate group of seats known as the jury box where the jury sits (in jurisdictions that allow for jury trials). Apart from the parties to the case and any witnesses, only the lawyers can literally pass the bar (court personnel and jury members usually enter through separate doors), and this is the reason why the term "the bar" has come to refer to the legal profession as a whole (see bar association). There is usually a podium or lectern between the two tables where the lawyers may stand when they argue their case before the judge.

The other side of the bar is open to the general public and there are usually seats for curious spectators. This area is the gallery. Seating for the gallery can either be pew style benches or theater seats. In some cases however, especially in heavily-used urban courtroom settings, the gallery is separated from the rest of the room by a partition of bulletproof glass to prevent injury to spectators (and vice versa), or to control them from charging across the bar in tension-filled cases.

All of the above applies only to trial courts. Appellate courts in the United States are not finders of fact, so they do not use juries or hear evidence; that is the trial court's job. Therefore, in an appellate court, there is neither witness stand nor a jury box, and the bench is much larger to accommodate multiple judges or justices.

The walls are often partially or completely wood-paneled. This is a matter of style and tradition, but some jurisdictions have elected to construct courtrooms with a more "modern" appearance. Some courtroom settings are little more than a closed circuit television camera transmitting the proceedings to a correctional facility elsewhere in order to protect the court from violent defendants who view the proceedings on television within a jail conference room and are allowed duplex communications with the judge and other officers of the court.

Multiple courtrooms may be housed in a courthouse.

Answer 2

It's called the "bench," even though the judge is typically sitting in a chair.

Answer 3

It is known as "the bench."

Answer 4

The judge sits on the bench.

Answer 5

On a chair

Answer 6

Jury box.