The Organisation of the Judiciary

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I. The Judicial Executive Board

Function

3. The Lord Chief Justice primarily exercises through the Judicial Executive Board his executive responsibilities for:

  1. providing leadership, direction and support to the judiciary of England and Wales;
  2. determining the structure roles and responsibilities of the judiciary;
  3. developing policy and practice on judicial deployment, authorisations, appointment to non-judicial roles and general appointments policy;
  4. putting forward the requirements for new appointments of High Court Judges and Lords Justices of Appeal and holding discussions on specific appointments with the Judicial Appointments Commission and the Lord Chancellor;
  5. considering general policy on complaints;
  6. directing the judicial communications strategy through the Judicial Communications Office;
  7. managing the judiciary’s overall relationship with the Executive branch of Government and Parliament, overseas relations and other jurisdictions and bodies, including  the legal profession;
  8. considering and making recommendations on the spending review priorities, targets and plans as they affect the judiciary and the financing and resources for the court system;
  9. approving the annual budget for the Judicial Offices and approving the agreement with the Permanent Secretary on resources;
  10. setting clear objectives, priorities, and standards for the Judicial Office and monitoring its performance;
  11. overseeing the responsibilities of the Judicial Studies Board for training.
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Composition

4. The Judicial Executive Board comprises the holders of the following judicial offices:

  1. Lord Chief Justice, Chairman
  2. Master of the Rolls
  3. President of the Queen’s Bench Division
  4. President of the Family Division
  5. Chancellor of the High Court
  6. Vice-President of the Queen’s Bench Division
  7. Senior Presiding Judge

5. The Director of the Directorate of Judicial Offices is a member.

6. The Secretary is provided by the Judicial Office.

7. The Judicial Executive Board may from time to time invite additional members to work with it on particular issues or to attend particular meetings.

8. The Permanent Secretary to the Department of Constitutional Affairs and the Chief Executive of HMCS are respectively invited to attend and discuss issues from time to time.

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The conduct of business

9. The first meeting was on 27 July 2005.

10. The Judicial Executive Board usually meets in Room C107 at 9:30 on or about the penultimate Thursday of each month, except in August and September. The meetings generally occupy the morning with lunch to follow. The afternoons are kept free of judicial and other commitments.

11. Board members debate issues fully and rigorously, representing their  individual responsibilities, but the overriding aim of the Judicial Executive Board is to reach conclusions that are best for the judiciary as a whole and then to act on them.

12. The Judicial Executive Board endeavours to reach a decision by consensus; in default of consensus on an issue, the decision on that issue is for the Lord Chief Justice.

13. Each meeting of the Judicial Executive Board is managed though an agenda agreed by the Lord Chief Justice and circulated to members one week in advance by the Secretary. The agenda always contains the following items:

  1. Approval of minutes of previous meetings;
  2. Consideration of the Board’s forward programme;
  3. Communicating any key messages;

14. Other senior judges with responsibilities set out in part III are informed in advance of issues to be discussed so that they can provide the necessary detailed input into the discussion of the Judicial Executive Board.

15. The Secretary prepares a Forward Programme of key issues to be considered by the Board in each financial year.

16. Papers for the Judicial Executive Board are circulated by the Secretary one week in advance of any meeting at which they are to be considered.

17. The Secretary keeps the minutes.

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The sub-committees

18. The Judicial Executive Board will have three sub-committees to ensure that detailed matters relating to each of the three main jurisdictions are considered:

  1. Criminal:
    1. President, Queen’s Bench Division
    2. Vice-President, Court of Appeal Criminal Division
    3. The Chairman of the Criminal Justice Council
  2. Civil
    1. Master of the Rolls
    2. Chancellor of the High Court
    3. Vice-President Queen’s Bench Division
    4. Vice-President, Court of Appeal, Civil Division
    5. Deputy Head of Civil Justice
  3. Family
    1. President,  Family Division
    2. Judicial Review Team
    3. Family Division Liaison Judges (as and when necessary)
    4. Chairman of the JSB Family Committee (as and when necessary)

The Lord Chief Justice attends meetings of these sub-committees when necessary. The Senior Presiding Judge (or his Deputy) attends each meeting to ensure coordination.

19. The terms of reference of the sub-committees are:

  1. Criminal
    1. The Committee will seek to coordinate the work of the judges with the individual responsibilities set out below in relation to criminal justice and provide advice to the Judicial Executive Board on criminal justice issues
    2. The committee will:
      1. Seek to maintain the efficient running of the business of the criminal courts.
      2. Decide short and long term judicial priorities for Criminal Justice.
      3. Define roles and reporting lines for judges with additional responsibilities.
      4. Provide guidance to the judiciary.
      5. Liaise with the Rose Committee.
      6. Alert the Judicial Studies Board to criminal justice issues which may require judicial training.
      7. Consider so far as necessary, issues discussed and decisions made by the JEB and refer issues to the JEB as necessary.
      8. Arrange liaison with the Criminal Justice sub-committee of HM Council of Circuit Judges.
  2. Civil
    1. Objective:
      To advise and make recommendations to the Judicial Executive Board, for the future development of Civil Justice in England and Wales.
    2. The committee will:
      1. Seek to maintain the efficient running of the business of the civil courts.
      2. Decide short and long term judicial priorities for Civil Justice.
      3. Arrange for authorisations s.9 (1) approvals of civil judges.
      4. Define roles and reporting lines for judges with additional responsibilities.
      5. Provide guidance to the junior judiciary.
      6. Provide a senior judicial response to consultation documents that relate to Civil Justice.
      7. Alert the Judicial Studies Board to civil justice issues which may require judicial training.
      8. Consider so far as necessary, issues discussed and decisions made by the JEB and refer issues to the JEB as necessary.
      9. Work with the Civil Justice Council, the MoJ and the Civil Procedure Rules Committee in the development of Civil Justice.
  3. Family
    1. Objective:
      To advise and make recommendations to the Judicial Executive Board, for the future development of Family Justice in England and Wales.
    2. The committee will:
      1. Seek to maintain the efficient running of the business of the family courts.
      2. Decide short and long term judicial priorities for Family Justice.
      3. Define roles and reporting lines for judges with additional responsibilities.
      4. Provide guidance to the judiciary.
      5. Liaise with the Family Justice Council
      6. Alert the Judicial Studies Board to family justice issues which may require judicial training.
      7. Consider so far as necessary, issues discussed and decisions made by the JEB.
      8. Arrange liaison with the Family Justice sub-committee of HM Council of Circuit Judges.
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Annual strategy meetings

20. The senior members of the judiciary with the responsibilities set out in part III attend at approximately annual intervals a conference organised by the Judicial Office at which broad and strategic issues relating to the judiciary are discussed.

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