addressing a judge

[deniseauger]

When addressing a judge and his wife in a letter is it correct to write:
Dear Judge and mrs. Smith,

 

[rewboss]

When addressing a judge and his wife in a letter is it correct to write:
Dear Judge and mrs. Smith,

That is the case in the USA.

In Britain, it's more complicated because different types of judge are addressed in different ways, but in most cases it's the same.

In court, an American judge is called "Your Honor", while a British judge is called "My Lord" or "My Lady".

And this brings me to a story I once heard about a British court case, where the prosecution counsel was putting his case:

Counsel: "...and in fact, the accused was as drunk as a judge."

Judge: "Mr Smith, I do not appreciate your making jokes of this nature. You know perfectly well that the correct idiom is 'as drunk as a lord'."

Counsel: "Yes, my Lord."