Judicial Appointments Commission releases its annual report
Women made up 44% of applicants and more than half of recommended legally qualified judicial appointments in the last year, according to the Judicial Appointments Commission’s (JAC) seventh annual report.
Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates made up 16% of applicants and seven per cent of recommendations, which matches their being between six and ten per cent of the eligible pool. Women make up between 29-44% of the eligible pool.
The JAC ran more selection exercises than in any previous year (36), handled 4,637 applications and made 597 recommendations. These included the selection of the president and three justices of the Supreme Court, three heads of division and a record 13 new judges for the Court of Appeal.
The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, said: “One of my long held aspirations as LCJ is coming to pass.
“Increasing numbers of women are applying and being selected on merit for judicial office at every level of the judiciary, to great public advantage. I hope that women and other underrepresented groups read these statistics and are encouraged to apply for the Bench.
“We need the best candidates for appointment. Anything else, such as sex, race, sexuality or socio-economic background, is irrelevant.”
The JAC budget has shrunk by one quarter in the last two years to less than £5m.
