A magistrate appointed to hear minor cases, grant licences, etc., in a town, county, or other local district, esp. an unpaid or (now) unsalaried one…

= Justice of the Peace, n.; (also) a magistrate of any inferior court. Frequently in plural.

In specific offices and roles. Any of various officials appointed to keep the peace in a region or community. Chiefly as conservator of the peace.

Warden of the Peace = ‘Guardian of the Peace’: see guardian, n. 1b.

†Guardian of the Peace: an earlier name for a ‘Justice of the Peace’. Guardian of the Spiritualities, Guardian of the Temporalities: see those words…

humorous. (A name given to) a magistrate. Obsolete.

Law. A civil officer exercising local judicial power; a justice of the peace, †a judge (obsolete); a person presiding over a magistrate's court (see…

Justice of Peace.

A magistrate or justice of the peace.

British. A justice of the peace on the commission of a county. Obsolete.

British slang. A magistrate. Cf. beak, n.3 a.