'Situations vacant: As part of a planned development programme, the Lord Chancellor seeks solicitors for the following positions: circuit judges and district judges.

Must be enthusiastic, between 45 and 60 and a serving recorder or deputy district judge.'Will we see such advertisements in the professional and national publications from October of this year? Certainly, it is likely to happen on the Wales and Chester, western and north-eastern circuits.In July 1993, Lord Mackay, in his speech at the Lord Mayor's dinner for Her Majesty's judges, revealed his intention to develop the judicial appointments procedure which, in May 1994, his department set out in a paper.The paper seeks, in the form of a seven-point programme, to identify the way forward, although significantly there is no criticism of the existing procedures for appointments.

The new policy (if it is really different, which is doubtful) is totally dependent on the one hand on applicants, or 'candidates' as we are to call them, being either existing recorders or deputy district judges and, on the other hand, on 'wide consultation with the judiciary and senior members of the Bar and the Council of the Law Society'.However, as well as these similarities between the old procedure and the new, there are differences.Interestingly, the first of the seven points in the programme has had the least said of it: namely the measures which are apparently under way, internally within the Lord Chancellor's Department, to improve the arrangements (which are not identified) for forecasting the numbers of judges required at different levels, where geographically vacancies are likely to arise and the types of work needing to be dealt with.Apparently, moves are afoot to encourage women and members of the ethnic minorities to apply, though again the moves are not explained, nor regrettably is there any reference to the disabled.A second innovation is an annual competition for judicial office although, and without explanation, the competition will be confined to office below the level of the High Court.

However, in the future, competitions will be extended to prospective assistant recorders, deputy district judges, tribunal full-time officers and stipendiary magistrates.The competition appears to be based at its first stage on close scrutiny of the application form and, more importantly it appears, on accumulated comments 'over the years' from the judiciary, senior members of the Bar and of the Council of the Law Society.

Curiously, if the paper is in part addressed to opening up the judicial appointments procedure, no detailed indication is given as to how and from when these important comments are collected, received or collated.If short-listed, not an examination but an interview is the next hurdle for the applicant.

The interview will be conducted by a three-person panel in each circuit consisting of a member of the judiciary, a 'senior member of the Lord Chancellor's Department' and a lay person, to be a nominee from persons presently sitting as chairmen or members of the advisory committees on justices of the peace.What is clear is that the recommendation of the interviewing panel will not be decisive but only an element in the final decision, such element attracting 'appropriate weight'.Other contributions to the final 'personal' decision of the Lord Chancellor will be full records of views about each applicant by the judiciary and the presiding judge.Although one can understand the need for these views to be expressed, again there is no indication as to how this commentary is to be obtained or recorded and what the guidelines will be for the comments unless the criteria for selection, set out in the paper, are to be the exclusive criteria.If one is so fortunate as to succeed, successful candidates will be used to fill all vacancies.

It is disappointing that no reference is made to provision for unsuccessful candidates discovering the reason for failure.

Having apparently opened up the procedure for appointment, such an omission could be a source of problems in the future.Finally, from the detailed job descriptions set out in the paper together with details of eligibility and criteria for selection, two selection criteria are particularly worthy of note.The first is a positive statement requiring and describing 'communicative skills' which appears to be a very laudable move towards plain English.The second is a requirement that the applicant will have a knowledge of and respect for people of all social backgrounds and a sensitivity towards the influence of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds on the attitudes and behaviour of people whom they encounter in the course of their work.Also, both of these may be regarded as almost a statement of the obvious, certainly nothing will be lost by highlighting these factors.Whilst there is no doubt that a more open procedure is envisaged, it is doubtful that much of the mystique presently involved in the judicial appointments procedure has been removed and that the new procedure will necessarily make 'the profession and the wider public more confident' that the best qualified will take office.