Challenges-Judicial empathy

Empathy – a true or a false friend?

Points of empathy 

• Definition and distinguishment between ‘affective empathy’ and ‘cognitive empathy’.
• Managing the dark side to sinking into and feeling the emotions of others by establishing and properly applying distinctive ‘self-safe-filter’.
• Acknowledging and valuing kid’s feelings and treating disabled people equally should be apparent during hearings.
• Empathy as an ethical value related to Ethical and Professional Conduct, rather than a regulation to be complied with.
• Does letting magistrates’ feelings visible for the rest of the world make them look fragile or gives them an image of possessing nobility of spirit?

 

Our proposal for new ethical rule 

Magistrates shall improve their skills to identify, recognize and respect emotions, thoughts and feelings important to the process of delivering justice and shall protect the balance between individual interests and public expectations of the judiciary.