Judicial Appointments Process

Inquiry into the judicial appointments process for the courts and tribunals of England and Wales and Northern Ireland (including first instance courts) and for the UK Supreme Court. The call for evidence can be viewed below. The deadline for submissions was 30 June 2011. Call for Evidence Note for the witness on the scope of the inquiry There appears to be a consensus that all judicial appointments should be made on merit and that the process should respect the constitutional principle of the independence of the judiciary. Beyond this, there is a range of questions including achieving greater diversity of those selected, ensuring appropriate accountability and transparency, the efficiency and effectiveness of the appointments systems, and the respective roles of the independent selection commissions, ministers, the judiciary and Parliament. The Committee will ask whether the appointments system is fair, independent, transparent and open. It will examine a range of questions including the following. Does the judicial appointments process secure an independent judiciary? Should Parliament scrutinise judicial appointments? How can public understanding of the appointments process be improved? Is the system based on merit? Do we have a sufficiently diverse judiciary?