A good number just need you to pass / stay active members of the Bar. Yes, you could act as a lawyer with this info, but nothing on the surface appears to demand actual work experience to become a judge (although "fair" application systems would bias against a candidate who doesn't have working experience). You can get around the "active" requirements with self study logs or having an exempt status given to you. And once you're a judge anywhere, that fact on its own counts as meeting the criteria for staying active, regardless of the number of cases you've actually worked on.
I mean, the guy who Eisenhower appointed as Chief Justice (Earl Warren, after a quick DDG) had never sat on a court in his entire life up until that point. He was a prosecutor.
https://mdcourts.gov/judgeselect/judqualifications
A good number just need you to pass / stay active members of the Bar. Yes, you could act as a lawyer with this info, but nothing on the surface appears to demand actual work experience to become a judge (although "fair" application systems would bias against a candidate who doesn't have working experience). You can get around the "active" requirements with self study logs or having an exempt status given to you. And once you're a judge anywhere, that fact on its own counts as meeting the criteria for staying active, regardless of the number of cases you've actually worked on.
Also for laughs:
https://abovethelaw.com/2020/12/california-bar-exam-flagged-a-third-of-applicants-as-cheating/
I mean, the guy who Eisenhower appointed as Chief Justice (Earl Warren, after a quick DDG) had never sat on a court in his entire life up until that point. He was a prosecutor.