Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales

On 3rd April 2006, when the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 came into force, the Lord Chief Justice became head of the judiciary of England and Wales, a role previously held by the Lord Chancellor.

The current Lord Chief Justice is also Head of Criminal Justice and President of the Courts of England and Wales.

You will find a video and podcast of the previous Lord Chief Justice, Lord Phillips interviewed by Marcel Berlins on this website.

Key responsibilities

Under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the Lord Chief Justice has some 400 statutory duties. His key responsibilities include:

  • Representing the views of the judiciary of England and Wales to Parliament and Government.
  • The welfare, training and guidance of the judiciary in England and Wales within resources made available by the Lord Chancellor. The Lord Chief Justice discusses with Government the provision of resources for the judiciary.
  • The deployment of judges and allocation of work in courts in England and Wales.

He also:

  • Sits on important criminal, civil and family cases. He gives judgments and lays down practice directions in many of the most important appeal cases.
  • Shares responsibility with the Lord Chancellor for the Office for Judicial Complaints, the body which investigates complaints made against judicial office holders.
  • Chairs the Sentencing Guidelines Council, a public body designed to support sentencers in their decision-making, and encourage consistency in sentencing throughout the court system.
  • Chairs the Judicial Executive Board and the Judges’ Council, two bodies which assist him in managing his responsibilities. Is also President of the Magistrates’ Association.
  • Is President of the Courts of England and Wales and may hear cases in any English or Welsh court, including Magistrates’ Courts.

He and the senior judiciary are supported by a team of civil servants who form the Directorate of Judicial Offices.

Appointment

From now on Lord Chief Justices will be appointed by a special panel convened by the Judicial Appointments Commission. In practice, the Lord Chief Justice and Heads of Division are generally appointed from among Appeal Court judges - the Lords and Lady Justices - however the appointments can be made from the Judicial Committee of the House of Lords (the Law Lords).

Court dress

For criminal hearings Heads of Division and Court of Appeal judges wear a Court coat and waistcoat (or a sleeved waistcoat) with skirt or trousers and bands (two strips of fabric hanging from the front of a collar), a black silk gown and a short wig.

When presiding over civil cases this group of judges wear the civil robe introduced on 1 October 2008, with gold tabs at the neck of the gown and no wig.