Judge


 * You may be looking for this judge's younger brother, who's also a judge.

"Judge"

- The law is the end product of many years of history... the fruit of human knowledge! Like a gem, polished to a gleam through trials... and errors. It is this fruit we receive, and pass on, and face in our time. And it is always changing, growing. Nurturing it is our task as human beings.

The "judge" presides over most of Phoenix Wright and Apollo Justice's trials.

Career
"Judge"

- I've seen quite a few things in my many years on the bench. And in all that time, I've finally learned this one thing. Each case is different, and takes place in its own world, if you will. In order to fully understand that world, first we have to immerse ourselves in it completely.

The judge has presided over several notable trials in his many years in the courtroom. This account begins with the trial of Mack Rell in what would come to be known as the second KG-8 Incident, a trial that introduced the judge to then-rookie prosecutor Miles Edgeworth.

The second KG-8 Incident

 * Main article: Turnabout Reminiscence

"Miles Edgeworth"

- Objection! Your Hon--

"Judge"

- I cannot allow you to make an objection.

"Miles Edgeworth"

- What!? Your Honor... I'm really sorry, but...  I cannot allow you to not allow me to make an objection!

"Judge"

- Egads! I've been overruled!?

In 2011, the judge presided over a trial that would end some eras and begin others. When Mack Rell was arrested for murder, he claimed to be the Great Thief Yatagarasu. However, when prosecutor Byrne Faraday brought forth condemning evidence against him in court, Rell suddenly changed his story, accusing Faraday of being the Yatagarasu and the one who had sent him to commit the murder. In light of these events, the judge suspended the trial to make way for a replacement for Faraday: a new prosecutor named Miles Edgeworth.

As the judge returned to his bench to restart the trial, Faraday and Rell were both found murdered. The judge remembered what he had seen in the washroom and accused Gumshoe of the murder. However, Edgeworth looked into Gumshoe's surveillance job and determined that much of the judge's testimony was built on a number of misunderstandings on his part. Gumshoe was eventually cleared of all charges thanks to Edgeworth's efforts, although the true culprit managed to escape.

Murder at the university

 * Main article: Turnabout Memories

Phoenix Wright returns

 * Main article: The First Turnabout

The Mia Fey murder case

 * Main article: Turnabout Sisters

Death of a star

 * Main article: Turnabout Samurai

Edgeworth on trial

 * Main article: Turnabout Goodbyes

Murder of a detective

 * Main article: Rise from the Ashes

An amnesiac Wright

 * Main article: The Lost Turnabout

Maya Fey on trial again

 * Main article: Reunion, and Turnabout

Tragedy at the circus

 * Main article: Turnabout Big Top

"Judge"

- Hah hah... Sometimes I do make myself useful in these chambers.

A deadly rivalry

 * Main article: Farewell, My Turnabout

Murder at a restaurant

 * Main article: Recipe for Turnabout

The death of Elise Deauxnim

 * Main article: Bridge to the Turnabout

"Phoenix Wright"

- Did the judge take smart pills at the last recess?

The end of an era

 * Main article: Turnabout Succession

A fallen legend on trial

 * Main article: Turnabout Trump

Death of a mobster's doctor

 * Main article: Turnabout Corner

Smuggling and murder

 * Main article: Turnabout Serenade

A case of art, journalism and magic

 * Main article: Turnabout Succession

Personality
"Phoenix Wright"

- (For the love of all things good, Your Honor, have some spine... For my sake...)



The judge is naïve and gullible, but he is said to give the correct verdict without fail. He tends to change his mind very easily, a trait that Phoenix Wright uses to his advantage. However, he is also very easily wooed by female witnesses such as Dahlia Hawthorne, which allows guilty female witnesses to almost be let off the hook several times. It often seems that the judge is more likely to side with the prosecution than the defense and to prefer Miles Edgeworth over Phoenix Wright, but this ultimately does not affect his verdict.

The judge is often portrayed as a bit absent-minded and hard of hearing. For example, he has, on at least one occasion, wasted an entire day searching for his dentures only to realize they were in his mouth all along. This absent-mindedness has led to many comical occurrences in the courtroom. In addition, the judge sometimes finds it hard to follow what people are saying, very rarely understanding what Godot says. The judge's brother often criticizes him for not studying hard enough, advice that he took to heart only a few years recently. Nevertheless, the judge occasionally shows signs of deep wisdom.

The judge is very out of touch with technology. For example, he is known not to know the meaning of e-mail or computers, and he refers to old-fashioned things such as the Gramophone. He also has never heard of nail polish, leaving him puzzled as to why his wife's nails are red.

The judge often lets his fear of certain people get to him. He is horribly afraid of Franziska von Karma and always gives in to her, to the point of forgetting that he has more authority than she does. His fear of one witness, Furio Tigre, forced him to hide under his stand every time Tigre shouted.

Following the Cohdopian Embassy murder case, the judge considered teaming up with a baliff and becoming a lawyer, but he decided to keep his current job.

The judge can apparently speak Spanish.

Name?
Phoenix Wright once received the judge's business card, but couldn't read his signature.

References to other media
During Bridge to the Turnabout, the judge refers to himself as a "spoony bard". This is a direct reference to a famous phrase from the English translation of Final Fantasy IV, in which Tellah refers to Edward Chris von Muir as a "spoony bard."

Note
The judge is one of only four characters to appear in all Ace Attorney games to date (the other three being Phoenix Wright, Dick Gumshoe and Winston Payne).