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"There is no substitute for sitting with a judge when trying to assess if Judicial Office would be of interest."

Judicial Work Shadowing Scheme

The Judicial Work Shadowing Scheme gives eligible legal practitioners who are considering a career in judicial office, either now or in the future, an insight into the work of a judge. The scheme is administered centrally by the Directorate of Judicial Offices for England and Wales.

Eligible legal practitioners can spend up to three days observing the work (both in and out of court), of the following judges:

  • High Court Judge
  • Circuit Judge
  • District Judge (sitting in civil or family jurisdictions)
  • District Judge (Magistrates’ Courts)
  • Tribunal Judge

Participants in the scheme can shadow a judicial office holder for any period of up to three days. The shadowing does not have to take place on consecutive days, but must be completed within six months of acknowledgement of the application. Participants are encouraged to shadow for a minimum block of two days, although this will also depend on the availability of the judicial office holder being shadowed.

Placements are arranged locally by courts and tribunals staff in liaison with the participating judges and court managers except for those in the High Court which are arranged by the Judicial Office.  Unfortunately, we cannot reimburse costs and participants need to make their own arrangements for accommodation and travel.

Shadowing can cover any aspect of a judge’s work, both in court and out of court. All participants sign a declaration to confirm they have a genuine interest in judicial appointment, and accepting that they are prohibited from disclosing any facts or information about the cases after the shadowing is completed.

Due to the increasing popularity of the scheme it can take some time for the placement to be arranged. Please consider this when applying. If you are able to offer more than one location then your placement may be arranged more quickly. If you are considering applying for a forthcoming judicial appointments selection exercise please apply for shadowing as early as possible. We cannot guarantee that a placement will be arranged within a certain time frame since this largely depends on the judge’s as well as your availability. 

We will endeavour to make reasonable adjustments for participants who have a disability.  (see section on ‘Information for applicants with a disability’)