Delays in handing down court judgments have led to two judges being sanctioned for misconduct, two disciplinary statements published by the Judicial Investigations Conduct Office have revealed.
A spokeperson confirmed yesterday that Mrs Justice Naomi Ellenbogen, a High Court judge, received a reprimand for misconduct and Richard McGrane, a recorder, was issued with formal advice for misconduct.
The Guide to Judicial Conduct states that judicial office holders should display diligence and care in the discharge of their judicial duties.
The JCIO said that in February, it received a complaint that Ellenbogen failed to hand down five judgments, with delays since the final hearing ranging from eight to 13 months.
The statement says Ellenbogen accepted the importance of delivering judgments promptly and apologised. She said she underestimated the time required to complete them and attributed the delays to workload issues that led to a cumulative backlog.
‘She submitted that the complexity of the cases and her wider workload necessitated greater time to be allocated for judgment-writing and at the appropriate time. She argued that, in those circumstances, the delays should not be regarded as misconduct. She accepted that communication with the parties could have been more proactive and she expressed regret for this, citing workload pressures and personal circumstances as contributing factors,’ the statement added.
The statement says the lord chancellor and lady chief justice agreed with the investigating judge's recommendation of a reprimand, noting that three judgments remained outstanding at the time of their decision.
The JCIO said it received a complaint concerning McGrane’s delay in handing down a written judgment involving a delay of almost a year.
The statement says McGrane accepted responsibility for the delay. ‘He explained that he was preparing two lengthy and complex reserved judgments concurrently, had experienced difficult personal circumstances, and had encountered IT difficulties that affected completion of the judgment. He also stated that the parties were kept informed of progress throughout and that completing the judgments remained his focus,’ the statement adds.
The lord chancellor and lady chief justice agreed with the nominating judge’s recommendation for McGrane to receive formal advice.
