The task of the independent Judicial Appointments Commission is to ensure that judicial appointments are fair, transparent and made on merit.
Appointments and diversity
The Judicial Appointments Commission will assume responsibility for making recommendations for the appointment of judicial office holders. The Commission will also have a remit to raise the diversity of the judiciary.
There will be a transitional period up to April 2007 and the Lord Chancellor will retain responsibility for certain judicial appointments during that time. The Chairman is Baroness Prashar.
The composition of the Judicial Appointments Commission is set out in Schedule 12 of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. There will be 15 Commissioners, including the Chairman. Commissioners serve for terms up to five years.
Under the terms of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, 12 Commissioners (including the Chairman) are appointed through open competition and three are nominated by the Judges' Council.
More information is available on the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) website.