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Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales

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"Lord Chief Justice" and "Lady Chief Justice" redirect here. For other uses, see Lord Chief Justice (disambiguation).

The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales.

Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales
The Judiciary of England and Wales
since 1 October 2023
Judiciary of England and Wales
StyleThe Right Honourable
NominatorJudicial Appointments Commission
AppointerMonarch of the United Kingdom,
on the recommendation of the Prime Minister and Lord Chancellor[1]
Term lengthMandatory retirement at age 75
Formation29 November 1880
DeputyMaster of the Rolls
Websitehttps://www.judiciary.uk/about-the-judiciary/lord-chief-justice/

Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English and Welsh courts, surpassed by the lord chancellor, who normally sat in the highest court. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 changed the roles of judges, creating the position of President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and altering the duties of the lord chief justice and the lord chancellor. The lord chief justice ordinarily serves as president of the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal and head of criminal justice, meaning its technical processes within the legal domain, but under the 2005 Act can appoint another judge to these positions. The lord chancellor became a purely executive office, with no judicial role.

The equivalent in Scotland is the Lord President of the Court of Session, who also holds the post of Lord Justice-General in the High Court of Justiciary. The equivalent in Northern Ireland is the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, local successor to the Lord Chief Justice of Ireland of the pre-Partition era.

Sue Carr, Baroness Carr of Walton-on-the-Hill, has been Lady Chief Justice since October 2023. She is the first female holder of the office.[2]

History

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Originally, each of the three high common law courts, the King's Bench, the Court of Common Pleas, and the Court of the Exchequer, had its own chief justice: the Lord Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, and the Chief Baron of the Exchequer.[3] The Court of the King's (or Queen's) Bench had existed since 1234.[4] In 1268 the first chief justice of the King's Bench was appointed.[5] From the time of Edward Coke in the early 17th century, the chief justice became known informally as "lord chief justice". It was only in 1875 that it became the statutory title.[6]

The three courts became divisions of the High Court in 1875 (though the head of each court continued in post). Following the deaths of Lord Chief Justice Sir Alexander Cockburn and Chief Baron Sir Fitzroy Kelly in 1880, the three divisions were merged into a single division, with Lord Coleridge, the last Chief Justice of Common Pleas, as Lord Chief Justice of England.[7]

The suffix "and Wales", now found in statutes and elsewhere, was of a holder's own motion and to reflect centuries-old reality, appended during the tenure of Lord Bingham of Cornhill. He held this office between 1996 and 2000.

Constitutional Reform Act 2005

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The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (CRA) made the Lord Chief Justice the president of the Courts of England and Wales, vesting the office with many of the powers formerly held by the Lord Chancellor. While the Lord Chief Justice retains the role of President of the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal, the CRA separated the role of President of the King's Bench Division; the changed chief justice role was first held by Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers. The CRA provides that the chief justice is chosen by a specially appointed committee convened by the Judicial Appointments Commission.

Modification of title from Lord to Lady

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Upon the announcement of the appointment on 15 June 2023 of Dame Sue Carr, it was highly anticipated that the title would be modified from Lord to Lady, in line with Dame Siobhan Keegan's title change of Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland to Lady Chief Justice. This speculation was further confirmed in news closer to Carr's appointment, on 27 September 2023 that Carr had chosen the title of Lady Chief Justice.[8] When Carr took office she was sworn as Lady Chief Justice, for the first time in the role's history since its inception.

Roles and responsibilities

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The lord chief justice has 400 individual statutory responsibilities specified in the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. While they sit as a judge on important criminal, civil and family cases, including appeal cases, they also have a wide range of administrative responsibilities. As president of the Courts of England and Wales, they are responsible for representing the opinions of the judiciary to government, overseeing their welfare and training and allocating work amongst them. With the Lord Chancellor, they are responsible for the handling of complaints against judges through the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office. They are also president of the Sentencing Council, and Magistrates' Association and chairs the Judicial Executive Board, and Judges' Council.[9]

Lord chief justices of the King's (Queen's) Bench, to 1880

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Portrait Lord chief justice From Until Notes
William de Raley 1234 1239
Sir Stephen de Segrave 1239 1241
William of York 1241 1247
Henry of Bath 1249 1251
Sir Gilbert of Seagrave 1251 1253
Henry of Bath 1253 1260
Sir William of Wilton 1261 1263
Nicholas de Turri 1265 1267
Sir Robert de Briwes 1268 6 November 1269
Richard of Staines 6 November 1269 1273
Martin of Littlebury 1273 1274
  Ralph de Hengham 1274 1290
Gilbert de Thornton 1290 1296
Sir Roger Brabazon 1296 March 1316
Sir William Inge March 1316 15 June 1317
Sir Henry le Scrope 15 June 1317 September 1323
Hervey de Stanton September 1323 21 March 1324
Sir Geoffrey le Scrope 21 March 1324 1 May 1329
Sir Robert de Malberthorp 1 May 1329 28 October 1329
Sir Henry le Scrope 28 October 1329 19 December 1330
Sir Geoffrey le Scrope 19 December 1330 28 March 1332
Sir Richard de Willoughby 28 March 1332 20 September 1332
Sir Geoffrey le Scrope 20 September 1332 10 September 1333
Sir Richard de Willoughby 10 September 1333 1337
Sir Geoffrey le Scrope 1337 October 1338
Sir Richard de Willoughby October 1338 21 July 1340
Sir Robert Parning 21 July 1340 8 January 1341
Sir William Scott 8 January 1341 26 November 1346
Sir William de Thorpe 26 November 1346 26 October 1350
Sir William de Shareshull 26 October 1350 24 May 1361
Sir Henry Green 24 May 1361 29 October 1365
Sir John Knyvet 29 October 1365 15 July 1372
Sir John de Cavendish 15 July 1372 14 June 1381 Murdered in the Peasants' Revolt
Sir Robert Tresilian 22 June 1381 17 November 1387
Sir Walter Clopton 31 January 1388 21 October 1400
Sir William Gascoigne 15 November 1400 29 March 1413
Sir William Hankford 29 March 1413 12 December 1423
Sir William Cheyne 21 January 1424 20 January 1439
Sir John Juyn 20 January 1439 24 March 1440
Sir John Hody 13 April 1440 25 January 1442
  Sir John Fortescue 25 January 1442 13 May 1461
Sir John Markham 13 May 1461 23 January 1469
Sir Thomas Billing 23 January 1469 5 May 1481
Sir William Hussey 7 May 1481 8 September 1495
Sir John Fineux 24 November 1495 23 January 1526
Sir John FitzJames 23 January 1526 21 January 1539
  Sir Edward Montagu 21 January 1539 9 November 1545
Sir Richard Lyster 9 November 1545 21 March 1552
Sir Roger Cholmeley 21 March 1552 4 October 1553
  Sir Thomas Bromley 4 October 1553 11 June 1555
Sir William Portman 11 June 1555 8 May 1557
Sir Edward Saunders 8 May 1557 22 January 1559
Sir Robert Catlyn 22 January 1559 8 November 1574
  Sir Christopher Wray 8 November 1574 2 June 1592
  Sir John Popham 2 June 1592 25 June 1607
  Sir Thomas Fleming 25 June 1607 25 October 1613
  Sir Edward Coke 25 October 1613 16 November 1616
  Sir Henry Montagu 16 November 1616 29 January 1621
  Sir James Ley 29 January 1621 26 January 1625
  Sir Ranulph Crewe 26 January 1625 5 February 1627
  Sir Nicholas Hyde 5 February 1627 24 October 1631
  Sir Thomas Richardson 24 October 1631 4 February 1635† Died in office
  Sir John Bramston 14 April 1635 31 October 1642
  Sir Robert Heath 31 October 1642 October 1645
  Sir Henry Rolle 12 October 1648 15 June 1655
  John Glynne 15 June 1655 17 January 1660 Knighted in 1660
Sir Richard Newdigate 17 January 1660 1 October 1660
Sir Robert Foster 21 October 1660 4 October 1663† First Chief Justice after the Restoration; died in office
  Sir Robert Hyde 19 October 1663 1 May 1665† Died in office
  Sir John Kelynge 21 November 1665 9 May 1671† Died in office
  Sir Matthew Hale 18 May 1671 20 February 1676 Formerly Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer 1660–1671
  Sir Richard Raynsford 12 April 1676 31 May 1678
  Sir William Scroggs 31 May 1678 11 April 1681
  Sir Francis Pemberton 11 April 1681 1682 Later Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in 1683
Sir Edmund Saunders 23 January 1683 19 June 1683 Died in office
  Sir George Jeffreys
(Lord Jeffreys from 1685) 		28 September 1683 23 October 1685 Lord Chancellor 1685–1688
Sir Edward Herbert 23 October 1685 22 April 1687 Later Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1687–1689
  Sir Robert Wright 22 April 1687 17 April 1689 Briefly Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in April 1687
  Sir John Holt 17 April 1689 5 March 1710† Died in office
  Sir Thomas Parker
(Lord Parker from 1714) 		11 March 1710 15 May 1718 Regent of Great Britain from 1 August to 18 September 1714; later Lord Chancellor 1718–1725, created Earl of Macclesfield in 1721; impeached for corruption in 1725
  Sir John Pratt 15 May 1718 24 February 1725 Interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1721
  Sir Robert Raymond
(Lord Raymond from 1731) 		2 March 1725 31 October 1733† Previously Attorney General 1720–1724; died in office
  Lord Hardwicke 31 October 1733 8 June 1737 Previously Attorney General 1724–1733; later Lord Chancellor 1737–1756 and created Earl of Hardwicke in 1754
  Sir William Lee 8 June 1737 8 April 1754† Interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1754; died in office
  Sir Dudley Ryder 2 May 1754 25 May 1756† Previously Attorney General 1737–1754; died in office
  Lord Mansfield
(Earl of Mansfield from 1776) 		8 November 1756 4 June 1788 Previously Attorney General 1754–1756; Lord Speaker in 1783
  Lord Kenyon 4 June 1788 4 April 1802† Previously Attorney General 1782–1783 1783–1784 and Master of the Rolls 1784–1788; died in office
  Lord Ellenborough 11 April 1802 2 November 1818 Previously Attorney General 1801–1802; interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1806
  Sir Charles Abbott
(Lord Tenterden from 1827) 		2 November 1818 4 November 1832† Interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1827; died in office
  Sir Thomas Denman
(Lord Denman from 1834) 		4 November 1832 5 March 1850 Previously Attorney General 1830–1832; interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1834
  Lord Campbell 5 March 1850 24 June 1859 Previously Attorney General 1834 and 1835–1841; briefly Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1841; later Lord Chancellor 1859–1861
  Sir Alexander Cockburn, Bt 24 June 1859 20 November 1880† Previously Attorney General 1851–1852, 1852–1856 and Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1856–1859; Courts of the Queen's Bench, Common Pleas, and Exchequer became divisions of a unified High Court in 1875; died in office

Lord (or Lady when the holder is female) chief justices of England (later England and Wales) 1880–present

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Portrait Lord chief justice From Until Notes
  Lord Coleridge 29 November 1880 14 June 1894† Previously Attorney General 1871–1873 and Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1873–1880; died in office
  Lord Russell of Killowen 11 July 1894 10 August 1900† Previously Attorney General 1886 1892–1894; first Catholic Lord Chief Justice; died in office
  Lord Alverstone 24 October 1900 21 October 1913 Previously Attorney-General 1885–1886 1886–1892 1895–1900 and Master of the Rolls in 1900; in retirement, created Viscount Alverstone in 1913
  Sir Rufus Isaacs
(Lord Reading from 1914,
Viscount Reading from 1916,
Earl of Reading from 1917) 		21 October 1913 8 March 1921 Previously Attorney General 1910–1913; later Viceroy of India 1921–1925 and created Marquess of Reading in 1926; first Jewish Lord Chief Justice
  Sir Alfred Lawrence
(Lord Trevethin from August 1921) 		15 April 1921 2 March 1922
  Sir Gordon Hewart
(Lord Hewart from 24 March 1922) 		8 March 1922 12 October 1940 Previously Attorney General 1919–1922; in retirement, created Viscount Hewart in 1940
  Viscount Caldecote 14 October 1940 23 January 1946 Previously Attorney General 1928–1929 and 1932–1936 and Lord Chancellor 1939–1940
Lord Goddard 23 January 1946 29 September 1958 Previously a law lord from 1944
Lord Parker of Waddington 29 September 1958 20 April 1971
Lord Widgery 20 April 1971 15 April 1980
Lord Lane 15 April 1980 27 April 1992 Previously a law lord from 1979
Lord Taylor of Gosforth 27 April 1992 4 June 1996
  Lord Bingham of Cornhill 4 June 1996 6 June 2000 First Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales; Master of the Rolls 1992–1996; Senior Law Lord 2000–2008;
  Lord Woolf 6 June 2000 30 September 2005 Previously a law lord from 1992; Master of the Rolls from 1996 to 2000
  Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers 30 September 2005 1 October 2008 Previously a law lord from 1999; Master of the Rolls 2000–2005; later Senior Law Lord 2008–2009 and President of the Supreme Court 2009–2012
  Lord Judge 1 October 2008 30 September 2013 Previously Deputy Chief Justice of England and Wales 2003–2005
  Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd 1 October 2013 1 October 2017
  Lord Burnett of Maldon 2 October 2017 30 September 2023
  Baroness Carr of Walton-on-the-Hill 1 October 2023 Incumbent The first Lady Chief Justice since the role's inception in the 13th century.

Hereditary peerages created for the Lord Chief Justice

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Appointment of new Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales". Press Release. United Kingdom Government. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  2. ^ Hymas, Charles (26 September 2023). "Britain's most senior judge to be called Lady Chief Justice". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  3. ^ Harriss, G. L. (2005). Shaping the Nation: England 1360–1461. Clarendon Press. p. 48. ISBN 9780198228165.
  4. ^ Turner, Ralph V. (1977). "The Origins of Common Pleas and King's Bench". The American Journal of Legal History. 21 (3). Temple University: 248. doi:10.2307/844792. ISSN 0002-9319. JSTOR 844792.
  5. ^ Smith, Richard A. (2015). "King's Bench". In Cannon, John; Crowcroft, Robert (eds.). The Oxford Companion to British History (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 530. ISBN 9780199677832.
  6. ^ Smith, Richard A. (2015). "Lord Chief Justice". In Cannon, John; Crowcroft, Robert (eds.). The Oxford Companion to British History (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 574. ISBN 9780199677832.
  7. ^ The Lord Burnett of Maldon (14 November 2019). "What's in a Name? The High Court and its Divisions" (PDF). judiciary.uk. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  8. ^ Hymas, Charles (26 September 2023). "Britain's most senior judge to be called Lady Chief Justice". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  9. ^ "Lord Chief Justice". Courts and Tribunals Judiciary. Retrieved 30 September 2023.

Further reading

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  • Campbell, John (1874), Lives of the Chief Justices of England, in four volumes (two additional volumes were a "Continuation by Sir Joseph Arnould – Late Judge of the High Court of Bombay"), 3rd ed. London, John Murray 1874.
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