The courts
magistrate judge
A federal judicial officer appointed by district judges to eight-year terms, handling warrants, pretrial matters, and, with the parties' consent, entire civil trials.
In full
Magistrate judges carry an enormous share of the federal district court workload: search and arrest warrants, initial appearances, detention hearings, discovery disputes, and reports and recommendations on dispositive motions that the district judge reviews. They are not Article III judges, so their authority over final judgments depends on party consent.
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A plain-language explanation for civic education, not legal advice. When in doubt, the official source named above controls.