Organisation of the Judiciary

Introduction

This outline sets out the structure for the organisation of the judiciary as at 1 June 2017.  It covers the following areas:

  1. The Judicial Executive Board
  2. The Tribunals Judicial Executive Board
  3. The Judges’ Council
  4. The allocation of day to day responsibilities
  5. The organisation of jurisdictional responsibilities
  6. The Judicial Office
  7. Organisation of the courts and tribunals

The organisational structure is premised on the following:

  1. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 and the Concordat set out the responsibilities of the Lord Chief Justice (LCJ), as Head of the Judiciary of England and Wales and as President of the Courts of England and Wales, in respect of the judiciary.
  2. The LCJ carries out these responsibilities through the Judicial Executive Board (JEB) and the Judges’ Council.
  3. The Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 sets out the responsibilities of the Senior President of Tribunals (SPT), as head of the unified tribunals judiciary across the United Kingdom. Tribunals outside the unified system established under the 2007 Act fall under the judicial leadership of the relevant Chief Justice in England & Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland respectively.
  4. The SPT carries out these responsibilities through the Tribunals Judicial Executive Board (TJEB).
  5. The LCJ, the Heads of Division and the SPT sit for the greater proportion of their time. Spread over the term the LCJ spends 2/3 days a week on judicial cases; the Heads of Division and the SPT spend 3 days a week on judicial cases.
  6. The Judicial Office, headed by its Chief Executive, mirrors the responsibilities assigned to the judiciary. It is a significant office with over 200 staff. Full support is provided for the judges with administrative and leadership responsibilities through their private offices. The Judicial College, Judicial HR team, the Judicial Communications Office and the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office are also part of the Judicial Office.