 For example, if a probate judge were to sentence a person to jail, that judge would not have immunity and could be sued because a probate judge has no jurisdiction to effect a criminal sentence.However, a judge in a court of general jurisdiction who happened to be overseeing a probate case "would" be immune from suit for sending a party to jail, because handing down a criminal sentence is not completely beyond the jurisdiction of such a judge.In the United States, this principle was established by the Supreme Court in "Stump v. Sparkman", 435 U.S. 349 (1978).