JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS: solicitors urged to apply in first competition since 2005


Experienced solicitors applying for appointment as recorders are on a 'level playing field' with barristers and should not be discouraged from putting themselves forward, Clare Pelham, chief executive of the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC), told the Gazette this week.



Following this week's launch of the first recorder competition since 2005, Ms Pelham actively encouraged solicitors to apply and reiterated that courtroom and advocacy experience were not set requirements.



'I hope there will be many applications from well-qualified solicitors. We want solicitors to apply. We want the best candidates on merit alone.



'I am confident there is a level playing field. Many solicitors will be able to demonstrate to a high standard the qualities and abilities required. They include intellectual capacity, an ability to understand and deal fairly, authority and efficiency. There is no requirement to have courtroom or advocacy experience,' she said.



Many solicitors have felt particularly disadvantaged at recorder level competitions, a position that is widely regarded as an essential stepping-stone to senior judicial appointment.



The judiciary's own statistics appear to confirm this view. As of April 2007, only 104 of a total of 1,201 recorders in England and Wales were solicitors. Following the 2005 recorder competition, from a total of 46 appointments, 41 were barristers and only five were solicitors.



JAC commissioner Mr Justice John Goldring said: 'As the assigned commissioner, I have taken a close interest in the planning stages. We have worked with both the Law Society and the Bar Council to try and ensure we select the best candidates from as wide a range of applicants as possible. I very much hope the new selection process will help in that regard.'



The latest competition will be the first run by the JAC under new recruitment procedures. It is seeking to fill a total of 76 recorder vacancies across family, crime, civil and chancery divisions on the Northern, North Eastern and Wales Circuits. The closing date for applications is 29 January 2008.



The JAC expects to run separate exercises to fill vacancies on the Midland and the South Eastern Circuits later this year and in early 2009.



For more information visit: www.judicialappointments.gov.uk



Anita Rice