Judge Pro Tempore Law and Legal Definition
Judge pro tempore means a temporary judge. A judge pro tem can be a judge who is sitting temporarily for another judge or an attorney who has been appointed to serve as a judge as a substitute for a regular judge. When an appeals justice is not available or there is a vacancy, a lower court judge is appointed Justice Pro Tem until a new Justice is appointed. Usually a Judge pro tempore is appointed by the court. S/he is appointed to reduce the work load of the courts. Many states use the service of Judge pro tempore. A judge pro tempore has all power of a regularly appointed judge.
