Service as a judge referee in the Supreme Court covers many areas of law; civil law, penal law and procedural law in particular. Judge referees acquire a good knowledge of case law, become fully familiar with legislative history and doctrine in the area of the general courts’ operations and hone their ability to analyse legal issues.
The work instils a very good understanding of the legal system and its application, and advanced legal analysis and problem-solving. Taken all together, this qualifies them well for future service as judges or for other qualified legal positions.
By far the majority of judge referees work with all the types of cases that appear before the court. However, some judge referees concentrate on the types of cases that focus on particular issues, for example, intellectual property law and land and environment law.
Since 2016, the Supreme Court has also had drafting law clerks. This has refined the judge referee role to primarily dealing with cases that will set precedents or are otherwise more complex than usual.
Most judge referees work in Stockholm, but there is also some scope for working from Lund or Gothenburg.
Judge referees are normally associate judges who have been trained for positions as judges. They often have additional work experience from, for example, Sweden’s Government Offices, the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s Office or the Office of the Chancellor of Justice. Judge referee appointments are limited in time, but there is some possibility of extension.
How to apply
The Supreme Court advertises vacancies for judge referees on the Swedish Courts website. There are normally two intakes every year.
The Supreme Court calls potential candidates for an interview. These interviews are led by the administrative director and the heads of the drafting divisions. After the interviews, the Supreme Court asks for the applicants’ references and then decides who is to be appointed.
If you have any questions about the recruitment of judge referees, please contact one of the Supreme Court’s administrative junior judges.