The Judge

The Judge (81 min)
Director: Erika Cohn

When she was a young lawyer, Kholoud Al-Faqih walked into the office of Palestine’s Chief Justice and announced she wanted to join the bench. He laughed at her. A few years later, Kholoud became the first woman judge to be appointed to the Middle East’s Shari’a (Islamic law) courts. The Judge presents an unfolding vérité legal drama, with rare insight into both Islamic law and gendered justice. The film illuminates some of the universal conflicts in the domestic life of Palestine custody of children, divorce, abuse while offering an unvarnished look at life for women and Shari’a law.