MONROE - It took a little while for Tom Vale to get used to people calling him "judge."
"I used to turn around to see who they were talking to," he said, with a laugh.
It's proper decorum in the courtroom to refer to him as "judge" or "your honor." Outside the courtroom, he still encourages people and old friends to call him "Tom."
"This isn't about ego," he said with a smile.
He likes to think he hasn't changed since he moved from his private law practice to the bench, and he hopes people don't view him any differently.
Vale completes his first six months as Green County Circuit Court Judge Thursday. He was elected to the new position in April and took office Aug. 4. He is the first Green County Circuit Court Branch 2 judge.
In his office on the second floor in the Green County Justice Tuesday, he looked back on the first few months of his six-year term.
Being a judge is different from being a practicing attorney, he said. As an attorney he represented one client. He was an advocate for his clients.
As a judge, he sees several different points of view.
"At sentencing you have the defendant, their family, the victim and their family, the probation and parole agent and the district attorney," Vale said. "My job is to be impartial."
He's had to sentence people to prison and it can be difficult, knowing that his decision will change the lives of not only the people sentenced but also their family.
"Those things you take home with you," he said. "You spend a lot of time thinking about those cases.
"I'm separating them from their family, but in reality, their actions did it."
A judge has to learn to leave his emotions at the office, he said.
Another thing that's changed since he became a judge is the interaction between attorneys. Vale has known the county's attorneys for years. An attorney can ask a colleague about a case or advise about a court matter. A judge can't do that.
"I have less interaction with them," he said of the other attorneys. "I can't talk about any cases that are pending."
He can still talk to them about the Wisconsin Badgers, he said, jokingly.
A typical day for Vale begins at the Justice Center at about 8 a.m. Hearings and court cases fill most of his day until ay least 3:30 p.m. On some days, the court proceedings don't end until after 5 p.m. He spends time in the afternoon reading about the cases that are scheduled for the next day before he goes home. It's not unusual for him to go back to the office in the evening to review laws that pertain to matters coming up before him the future.
"You're never done learning," he said.
It can be a demanding job, but Vale wouldn't change his decision to run for judge.
"After the first month I wondered if I made the right choice," he said, with a laugh. "After six months I'm glad I did it."
"I used to turn around to see who they were talking to," he said, with a laugh.
It's proper decorum in the courtroom to refer to him as "judge" or "your honor." Outside the courtroom, he still encourages people and old friends to call him "Tom."
"This isn't about ego," he said with a smile.
He likes to think he hasn't changed since he moved from his private law practice to the bench, and he hopes people don't view him any differently.
Vale completes his first six months as Green County Circuit Court Judge Thursday. He was elected to the new position in April and took office Aug. 4. He is the first Green County Circuit Court Branch 2 judge.
In his office on the second floor in the Green County Justice Tuesday, he looked back on the first few months of his six-year term.
Being a judge is different from being a practicing attorney, he said. As an attorney he represented one client. He was an advocate for his clients.
As a judge, he sees several different points of view.
"At sentencing you have the defendant, their family, the victim and their family, the probation and parole agent and the district attorney," Vale said. "My job is to be impartial."
He's had to sentence people to prison and it can be difficult, knowing that his decision will change the lives of not only the people sentenced but also their family.
"Those things you take home with you," he said. "You spend a lot of time thinking about those cases.
"I'm separating them from their family, but in reality, their actions did it."
A judge has to learn to leave his emotions at the office, he said.
Another thing that's changed since he became a judge is the interaction between attorneys. Vale has known the county's attorneys for years. An attorney can ask a colleague about a case or advise about a court matter. A judge can't do that.
"I have less interaction with them," he said of the other attorneys. "I can't talk about any cases that are pending."
He can still talk to them about the Wisconsin Badgers, he said, jokingly.
A typical day for Vale begins at the Justice Center at about 8 a.m. Hearings and court cases fill most of his day until ay least 3:30 p.m. On some days, the court proceedings don't end until after 5 p.m. He spends time in the afternoon reading about the cases that are scheduled for the next day before he goes home. It's not unusual for him to go back to the office in the evening to review laws that pertain to matters coming up before him the future.
"You're never done learning," he said.
It can be a demanding job, but Vale wouldn't change his decision to run for judge.
"After the first month I wondered if I made the right choice," he said, with a laugh. "After six months I'm glad I did it."