Judicial preview

At 51, Tony Lancaster, the new president of the Association of District Judges, does not fit with the media portrayal of judges as doddery and out of touch.

He is quick to share a joke and put people at their ease but, he says, he is able to make tough decisions when necessary.

Most importantly for those district judges who he will be representing over the next year, he says he still enjoys his work.

Before joining the bench in 1988, Judge Lancaster was a partner at Cumbrian law firm Mounseys.

He spent his first year as a full-time district judge on the outer Manchester circuit before moving to Newcastle Combined Court, where he still sits.

He also sits as a part-time recorder in criminal cases.

Judge Lancaster says solicitors should not be deterred from applying to join the bench.

'While advocates may have the most experience of court work, that is not always the determining factor in judicial appointments.

A sense of justice and fair play, patience, being a good lawyer and being courageous enough to make difficult decisions are all equally important,' he says.During his year in office, Judge Lancaster says he hopes to gain more recognition for the work done by district judges in the civil justice system.

'There is a danger that because they get on with work quietly and efficiently, they get overlooked,' he says.

He is also planning to open the debate on when judges should wear robes.

He says he can see the place for robes in ceremonial functions and in the criminal court, where judges 'represent the majesty of the law', but not in civil hearings were it is a dispute between individuals.

This is a view he knows some of his colleagues disagree with.When speaking of last year's civil justice reforms, Judge Lancaster says there is still 'perhaps a lack of imagination' among judges when applying the civil procedure rules.

Judges have been given a raft of new powers, like making order for penalty interest and indemnity costs, and they should not be afraid of stretching their wings and being more flexible in using them more widely in the interests of justice, he says.Meanwhile, this year will be marked by the Human Rights and Data Protection Acts coming into force.

Those areas of the law will develop hugely and he warns that solicitors should make sure they are fully trained to deal with it - because the judiciary will be.