High Judge (concept)
In Wardenism the role of priest and magistrate are combined into a single figure, that of the judge. Most towns will have at least one judge to administer their court, with larger cities being able to support dozens, even hundreds of such officials. Their duties extend to the management of the complex Wardenite religious law codes, both as justices of the court and as advocates for petitioners. As the Wardenite codes encompass both criminal as well as property and mercantile laws, the job of a judge is quite complex and requires years of training to be judged a master.
Judges who achieve mastery and renown may hope to be appointed as a High Judge, and given jurisdiction over all lower judges - at least in theory. In practice the divergence of different Wardenite legal traditions over the years has resulted in no less than three High Courts claiming the title, each refusing to recognize the legitimacy of the others. The Mainstream High Court is appointed by the Mamur, the Traditionalist High Court has assembled itself in a bottom-up fashion and claims to be merely a provisional body awaiting the Mamurmat's restoration to its true legal limits. The Idealists on the other hand, have a well established court that processes and approves prospective members to its body via meritocratic recommendations from lower judges, and holds itself to be a permanent and independant body.