Circuit judge vs criminal court judge

The differences between circuit judges and criminal court judges can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 8-10 years to become both a circuit judge and a criminal court judge. Additionally, a circuit judge has an average salary of $58,451, which is higher than the $57,924 average annual salary of a criminal court judge.

The top three skills for a circuit judge include appeals, legal research and court orders. The most important skills for a criminal court judge are background checks, trial preparation, and legal research.

Circuit judge vs criminal court judge overview

	Circuit Judge	Criminal Court Judge
Yearly salary	$58,451	$57,924
Hourly rate	$28.10	$27.85
Growth rate	-1%	-1%
Number of jobs	588	1,046
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	10	10

Circuit judge vs criminal court judge salary

Circuit judges and criminal court judges have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Circuit Judge	Criminal Court Judge
Average salary	$58,451	$57,924
Salary range	Between $38,000 And $88,000	Between $37,000 And $90,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between circuit judge and criminal court judge education

There are a few differences between a circuit judge and a criminal court judge in terms of educational background:

	Circuit Judge	Criminal Court Judge
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Most common major	Law	Law
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Circuit judge vs criminal court judge demographics

Here are the differences between circuit judges' and criminal court judges' demographics:

	Circuit Judge	Criminal Court Judge
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 58.8% Female, 41.2%	Male, 38.2% Female, 61.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 6.5% White, 75.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between circuit judge and criminal court judge duties and responsibilities

Circuit judge example responsibilities.

Manage, and update all scheduling of events, meetings, and appointments for mediation and arbitration for family law cases.
Perform extensive research and prepare legal memoranda on domestic relations and probate issues.
Perform clerical work by cross-referencing voters' names with their identification.

Criminal court judge example responsibilities.

Patrol areas in an undercover capacity to combat organize burglary, drug manufacturing/sales and prostitution.
Perform clerical work by cross-referencing voters' names with their identification.

Circuit judge vs criminal court judge skills

Common circuit judge skills

Appeals, 54%
Legal Research, 24%
Court Orders, 12%
Probate, 9%

Common criminal court judge skills

Background Checks, 91%
Trial Preparation, 5%
Legal Research, 4%

Circuit Judge vs. similar jobs

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Circuit Judge
Circuit Judge vs Criminal Court Judge

Updated January 8, 2025

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