President of the King’s Bench Division to retire from the judiciary

Administrative CourtCommercial CourtHigh CourtKing's Bench DivisionMedia and Communications ListPlanning CourtPresident of the King’s Bench DivisionTechnology and Construction CourtDame Victoria SharpNews

The President of the King’s Bench Division, Dame Victoria Sharp, has announced today (14 January) that she will retire from her role and as a senior judge in October 2026.

Dame Victoria became the first woman to lead the High Court’s largest division in 2019. The King’s Bench Division has over 70 judges hearing a wide range of litigation across the Administrative Court, the Planning Court, the Commercial Court, the Technology and Construction Court, the Media and Communications List and general King’s Bench Division, in areas such as contract and tort.

Dame Victoria also oversees the work of High Court judges across the country trying the most serious criminal cases.

During over a decade in senior judicial leadership, Dame Victoria has been a champion of transparency initiatives, leading the introduction of livestreaming in the Court of Appeal and the broadcasting of sentencing in the crown courts. Her time as President included steering the courts through the pandemic, including as Deputy Head of Criminal Justice when the criminal courts continued to sit – making England and Wales one of the only jurisdictions in the world to keep sitting at the time.

Dame Victoria has also sat in the Court of Appeal since 2013, hearing some of its most significant cases.

Dame Victoria said: “It has been a great privilege to lead the division, and I am immensely proud of the work of the King’s Bench judges and the critical work they and other judges do to support the administration of justice.”

The Lady Chief Justice, Baroness Carr, said: “Dame Victoria has been an immense leader in the judiciary for well over a decade, setting standards for excellence and resilience at a time of mounting challenge and workload. She is celebrated for her considerable legal thinking, as well as her profound commitment to the judges of the King’s Bench Division. We thank her for her tireless contribution in the delivery of service to justice.”

Background

For more information, see the King’s Bench Division webpage.

For more information on the role, see the President of the King’s Bench Division webpage.

Read a recent speech by the President of the King’s Bench Division: The Mayflower Lecture 2025

Further background on Dame Victoria’s career

  • Dame Victoria Sharp read law at Bristol University, was called to the Bar (Inner Temple) in 1979 and took silk in 2001. She became a Recorder in 1998-2008.
  • She was appointed as a Deputy High Court Judge in 2008, and a High Court Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division (now King’s Bench Division) in 2009. She was a Presiding Judge on the Western Circuit from 2012 to 2013. She was appointed as a Lady Justice of Appeal in 2013.
  • She was appointed as the Vice-President of the Queen’s Bench Division (now King’s Bench Division) in January 2016, and President of the Queen’s Bench Division in June 2019.
  • In February 2020, she was appointed as Deputy Head of Criminal Justice.
  • Dame Victoria succeeded Sir Brian Leveson and is the first woman to hold the position of President of the King’s Bench Division.