The question of gender balancing in the courts has been is one among which humanity has not yet answered. Specifically targeted if the female gender with the difficulties it experiences owing to the nature of creation. Arguments have existed contending the involvement of women as judges. The emotional nature of making decisions in women, the hormonal changes that affect their moods and affect, and the requirement of continued presence of judges are among the major reasons why the opponents of this particular topic denounce women judges. It is important that to evaluate this important subject of the law, to determine what difference it makes when a woman is a judge. It this paper, women judges are analyzed, in relation to their men counterparts.

A good portion of the population and the professional of the bench believe that there is a difference between men and women judges (Shaw & Shultz, 2013). There has been the argument that women tend to show a liking of the family law at the expense of other branches of the law. This may explain why many men still hold the traditional stereotype concerning women judges. Shaw and Shultz (2013) observe that women judges do make a difference in the rulings, but this is in particular to cases involving families. This has been the counterargument that has been used overtime to counter the women’s argument that gender differences do not affect the judgment. The denial of the gender effect on judgments count as a strategy employed by women to champion that they can judge as well as men can do.

The effectiveness of women judges too has been on doubt following observation that many women judges have a bias towards social health (Shaw & Shultz, 2013). Studies show that women in the bench have at one time, or another attempted to expand the boundaries of the law to address the needs of the litigants and t reflect their view on social health.The emotional background of women is a great factor that affects their decision at the bench. When women encounter cases relating to family and social issues, they attempt to look at all the dimension of the cases with a view to ending the conflict and preventing further conflicts. The emotional touch is not present in male judges as it is evident in female judges (Shaw & Shultz, 2013). The psycho-social health effect in women makes them be more sensitive to issues that touch on social issues than male judges do.

The nature masculine nature of the law profession does not favor women being on the bench (Rostami & Povey, 2012). The elegance, the weakness of women, and their tendency to deliver judgment in a softer language have been identified as some of the major reasons to deny women the authority in the bench. Rostami and Povey (2012)identify nurturing children, motherhood and reproduction as some of the reasons why women working as judges will not be effective. This depicts that women are not intellectually lower, but their biological nature denies them the features needed in practicing law as judges. The question of rationality in women has been of great concern. This is because many scholars see it difficult to be emotional, and at the same time to deliver a rational decision. Although being emotional is afeature of all human beings, it has been noted that men are not able to deliver judgments when they are emotional. Going by this fact, it is not possible for women to deliver a sober decision since emotions affect them easily.

The emotional influence on women judges comes out very clear especially when they are dealing with male convicts. A man crying in the bar will capture the emotions of the female judge. The judge is highly probable to make a decision which is biased. On the other hand, men are not moved by emotions as women are. The men will, therefore, make a rational, sober decision even if the convict is crying to attract sympathy. Convicts who employ their emotions to affect the decisions of judges are highly likely to affect women than men. This form of corruption will affect women quickly because of their tender heart. It is, therefore arguably fair to claim that women cannot make good judges if we consider their emotions.The monthly menstrual period in women serves as another reason why women should distance themselves in the field of judges. The judge is supposed to be sober always in order to deliver a rational decision. The effect of the menstrual process once it occurs is to change the mood swings in women. Once the mood is affected in women, there is a high probability that they will deliver a decision that will be highly affected by their affected mood (Welch, Spohn & Gruhl, 1981). The psychology of thinking is always affected by changing moods in a woman. Since her thinking will be affected, she is not likely to follow the law but her affected psychology will be a great determinant.

The premenstrual syndrome is a condition that affects women when they are close to experiencing their monthly periods. Better Health Channel (2011) outlines mood swings and angry outbursts among the signs of behavior of a woman who has the condition. Angry outbursts are uncontrollable. They come out without a plan because of psychological sickness. It is highly probable that a female judge will deliver a judgment which is just an angry outburst when they are suffering from pre-menstrual syndrome. The process of menstruation is a continuous process in females. Going by the fact that it affects women through the month, it is not possible for women to function soberly as judges. Perhaps postmenopausal women can do better because they do not have these effects of the hormones.The biological role and the regard by the society of the place and the plight of women affect into a great extent their role as judges. The profession demands all time presence. This is difficult to achieve in a woman because of their biological nature (Shaw & Shultz, 2013). The society demands more time with the woman in the home more than a man. Balancing between the profession of judging and family affairs becomes hard for a woman.

The leave that women need to fulfil their maternal roles deny them adequate time required in the profession of judges. Women will ask for maternity leave, and at the same time they will need time to rest during pregnancy. Apart from needing time to rest during pregnancy, there is a psychological effect that pregnancy instils in women due to changes in the levels of hormones. This combined with the time factor denies women a good opportunity to function as judges. The effectiveness for men is very high compared with the effectiveness of women. In their lifetime, men will need little time to be out of practice because of any psychological changes saving for an illness.

The constitution of the judge has identified the people who are fit to work as judges (Feenam, 2008). The people should be able-bodied, masculine, class privileged, heterosexual and able to assume the authority of a judge. These qualities favor men than they do women. For example, the soft sound of women denies them the tone that is needed of a judge.

A different view is expressed by Feenam (2008) in that, incorporating women in the bench, will bring a new voice in the in the bench. It is observed that they may bring with them a new way of delivering and making judgments. This also would function to change the plight of women in the entire profession of the law. Reforming the appointment systems in the governments can serve to add more women in the bench. This is because, over the past, the system has naturally favored men in the profession of judges.Many scholars have been unable to bring a clear distinction between male and female judges. This has led to the argument on the wealth of experience and the wealth of knowledge of the judge being considered the number one factor in delivery of judgments. According to Professor Erika Rackley (BBC Radio 4’s Law in Action, 2013), there is no big difference between male and female judges. However, a close examination of the judiciary shows a low number of women judges. It is, therefore, recommendable that more research be made to elaborate on what difference is made by female judges.

We can conclude that certain factors affect the effectiveness of women acting as judges. This ranges from their biological nature to the expectations that society has on women. It is important to do more research to ascertain the extent to which judgments delivered by women are different from those delivered by men. This will help governments come up with policies which will see a rise in number of women in the judiciary.

References

Better Health Channel. (2011). Premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Retrieved from http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au

Feenam, D. (2008). Women judges: considering judging, justifying diversity. Journal of Law and Society, 35 (4), 490-518. Retrieved from: http://eprints.ulster.ac.uk/11024/1/JLS_Article.pdf

Rackley, E. (2013, June 18). Are women judges different to men? Durham University law students find out in a groundbreaking experiment for BBC Radio 4’s Law in Action. Durham University News. Retrieved from: ttps://www.dur.ac.uk/news/newsitem/

Rostami, E. & Povey, T. (2012).Women, power and politics in the 21^st century Iran. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Limited. Retrieved from http://books.google.co.ke/books?id DOI: 0CC4Q6AEwAA#v

Shaw, G. & Shultz, U. (2013). Women in the judiciary. New York: Routledge.

Welch, S., Spohn, C. & Gruhl, J. (1981). Women as policymakers: The case of trial judges. American Journal of Political Science, 25 (2), 308-322. doi: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2110855

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