One of the most senior judges of the Family Division has been issued with ‘formal advice’ after falling asleep during a hearing. 

According to a statement from the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office, Mrs Justice Parker was spoken to following a complaint by parties in a case she was overseeing. 

The complaint was considered by both the lord chancellor David Gauke and lord chief justice Lord Burnett of Maldon. 

A spokesperson for the JCIO said: ‘While concluding that this amounted to conduct which had the potential to undermine public confidence the judiciary, the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice took into consideration that the judge fell asleep only momentarily and has expressed remorse for doing so.’ 

No details were provided about the date and nature of the hearing. 

Mrs Justice Parker, 68, was appointed a judge of the family division of the High Court in 2008. She was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire shortly afterwards.