Senior President of Tribunals
The current Senior President of Tribunals is Sir Keith Lindblom.
Where he sits and what he does
The Senior President of Tribunals is the independent and statutory leader of the tribunal judiciary. The office of the Senior President of Tribunals is independent of both the Executive and the Chief Justices, and was established under the Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.
Just as the Lord Chief Justice heads the judiciary in England and Wales, the Senior President heads the tribunals judiciary, although his remit extends to Scotland and Northern Ireland depending on the jurisdiction concerned (Immigration and Asylum as well as Tax are UK-wide).
The Senior President of Tribunals provides leadership for all those within the First-tier and Upper Tribunals and the Employment Tribunals. This includes all the Chamber Presidents and their Tribunal Judges and members, as well as those within Employment Tribunals in England and Wales and their Scottish counterpart, and the Employment Appeal Tribunal – in all, around 5,000 office-holders.
The Senior President has a number of statutory responsibilities. These include representing the views of tribunals judiciary to the Lord Chancellor, parliament and ministers.
Appointment
The Senior President can be selected from the ranks of existing Court of Appeal Judges (or the equivalent courts in Scotland and Northern Ireland) or through open competition run by the Judicial Appointments Commission. The current Senior President of Tribunals is Sir Keith Lindblom.
Working dress
The Senior President wears normal business dress, not a robe or wig.