Catalogue description Records of the Commission for Judicial Appointments and Successors

The Commission for Judicial Appointments: Background

Considerable debate about the Judicial and Queen's Counsel (Silk) appointments system had existed in the late twentieth and early twenty first centuries as conducted by the Lord Chancellor's Department and its successor body the Department for Constitutional Affairs. Many groups and individuals with a direct interest had expressed their views that the system failed to identify and appoint the best candidates.

A 1999 study by the Labour Research Department revealed that the ranks of the judiciary, particularly at the higher levels, have traditionally comprised mainly white males: with women comprising approximately 11% of total judge complement and only 1.7% of judges being from an ethnic background. The Study also showed that 69% of judges went to public school and 64% attended Oxbridge.

Much of the blame for this apparent under-representation of women and ethnic minorities was attributed to the heavy reliance on 'secret soundings', that had been a key aspect of the process of selecting judges for office. Under this process, candidates for judicial office were selected on the basis of conversations between senior lawyers, judges and professional bodies behind closed doors. Critics of the system complained that its supported an 'old boys network' which promoted people on the basis of who they know rather than drawing judges from the widest pool of talent.

Following an inquiry into the judicial appointment process by Sir Leonard Peach and commissioned by the Lord Chancellor, a new independent Commissioner for Judicial Appointments was appointed by the Lord Chancellor in 2001 to oversee the selection process.

The Commission for Judicial Appointments: Creation and Role

The Commission for Judicial Appointments was set up in a supervisory capacity as an independent body to ensure that such competitions were conducted fairly. The Commission was funded by moneys voted by Parliament to the Lord Chancellor's Department and its successor body.

The role and remit for the Commission for Judicial Appointments was set out in the Judicial Order in Council 2001 enabling its creation. Its remit covered the procedure by which the Lord Chancellor appointed or recommended candidates for appointment to most judicial appointments in England and Wales, with the exception of the most senior judicial appointments (e.g. the Law Lords and Heads of Division). Secondly, its remit covered competitions for the Membership of Tribunals. Finally, its remit covered Queen's Counsel competitions.

The Commission had no remit to investigate the conduct of judicial office holders. Further, the Commission had no remit over appointments or recommendations made by ministers other than the Lord Chancellor. It also had no remit over competitions for appointment to the judiciary or Queen's Counsel competitions in Scotland and Northern Ireland: for which separate bodies existed.

The role of the Commission was as follows:

• Investigation of complaints - The Commission investigated complaints that were made about the procedures for making the appointments that came within its remit to see whether candidates were treated fairly and that appointments were made in accordance with the principle of selection on merit.
• Review competitions - The Commission conduct in-depth reviews of a small sample of selected appointment competitions that came within its remit that were run by the Department for Constitutional Affairs. The reviews involved observing all stages of competitions, discussions with participants and scrutiny of relevant documents. Findings of these reviews were reported back to the Lord Chancellor. Commissioners made significant recommendations for improvements to the judicial appointments processes.

From 2001 to 2006, a body of eight Commissioners were appointed by the Lord Chancellor according to the Order in Council under the guidelines of the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Although appointed by the Lord Chancellor, the Commissioners were independent of this officer and his department. All appointments were made for a term of five years. The Commissioners were supported in their work by a Secretariat body that was based in London.

The Commission for Judicial Appointments closed on 31 March 2006 with the establishment of the Judicial Appointments Commission and the Judicial Appointments and Conduct Ombudsman (JACO).