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A Lord Justice of Appeal or Lady Justice of Appeal is a judge of the
Court of Appeal of England and Wales The Court of Appeal (formally "His Majesty's Court of Appeal in England", commonly cited as "CA", "EWCA" or "CoA") is the highest court within the Senior Courts of England and Wales, and second in the legal system of England and Wales only to ...
, the court that hears appeals from the
High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...
, the
Crown Court The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all indictable offences, some either way offences and appeals lied to it by the magistrates' courts. It is one of three Senior Courts of England and Wa ...
and other courts and tribunals. A Lord (or Lady) Justice of Appeal is the second highest level of judge in the
courts of England and Wales The courts of England and Wales, supported administratively by His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, are the civil and criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in England and Wales. The United Kingdom does not have ...
. Despite the title, and unlike the former
Lords of Appeal in Ordinary Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, commonly known as Law Lords, were judges appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 to the British House of Lords, as a committee of the House, effectively to exercise the judicial functions of the House of ...
(who were judges of still higher rank), they are not peers.


Appointment

The number of Lord Justices of Appeal was fixed at five by the Supreme Court of Judicature Act, 1881, but has since been increased. Judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales are selected from the ranks of senior judges, in practice High Court judges with lengthy experience, appointed by the
Monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power ...
on the recommendation of the
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
. The appointment is open to all types of civilians, including ministers of state and members of parliament.


Jurisdiction

Applications for permission to appeal a ruling of an inferior court (usually from the Crown Court in criminal matters and the
High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...
in civil matters but in some instances from a
County Court A county court is a court based in or with a jurisdiction covering one or more counties, which are administrative divisions (subnational entities) within a country, not to be confused with the medieval system of ''county courts'' held by the hig ...
) are heard by a single Lord or Lady Justice of Appeal. A full appeal is heard by three Court of Appeal judges in the Civil Division. In the Criminal Division, a single judge hears appeals against conviction with two other judges of the Court of Appeal Criminal Division (typically, two High Court judges, or one High Court judge and one senior circuit judge). Appeals against sentence may be heard by a single Court of Appeal judge with another judge, or by two High Court judges.


Title and form of address

In court, a Lord Justice of Appeal is referred to as My Lord or Your Lordship, and a Lady Justice of Appeal is referred to as My Lady or Your Ladyship. The
style Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to: * Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable * Design, the process of creating something * Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...
of "Lord Justice of Appeal" was prescribed by the
Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1877 The Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1877 (40 & 41 Vict c 9) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom enacted to provide the structure of the ordinary judges of the Court of Appeal, the appellate division of the High Court of Justice ...
, but the term "Lady Justice" was used in practice by women soon after they were promoted to sit as judges of the Court of Appeal, and the term was included in the
Courts Act 2003 The Courts Act 2003 (c.39) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom implementing many of the recommendations in Sir Robin Auld's (a Court of Appeal judgeReview of the Criminal Courtsin England and Wales (also known as the "Auld Review" ...
. When there is already or has until recently been a judge with the same surname as a new appointee, the new judge will often use a first name as part of his or her judicial title. Many judges have done this, such as Lord Justice Lawrence Collins (Sir Lawrence Antony Collins). When referring to a Lord or Lady Justice of Appeal in a legal context, the judge is identified by use of the surname (or first name and surname if appropriate), followed by the letters "LJ". For example, Lord Justice Bloggs or Lady Justice Bloggs would be referred to as "Bloggs LJ". Where several judges are listed the double letters 'LJJ' are used; for example, "Bloggs, Smith and Jones LJJ". A
knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
is granted to a man upon appointment to the High Court, usually made a
Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are th ...
; by convention, a woman on appointment to the High Court becomes a
Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(DBE). By convention judges of the Court of Appeal are sworn of the
Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the m ...
, entitling them to the honorific "
The Right Honourable ''The Right Honourable'' (abbreviation: ''Rt Hon.'' or variations) is an honorific Style (form of address), style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire and the Commonwealth ...
".


Court dress

Formerly, in all instances in court, a Court of Appeal judge's
apparel Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural ...
consisted of a black silk gown, court coat or waistcoat and a short bench wig. In cases heard by the Court of Appeal Criminal Division, this remains the court dress. In cases heard in the Civil Division, judges wear a one-piece, zip-up robe onto which are stitched vertical, gold, clerical bands and no wig. These bands are red for High Court judges, pink for High Court Masters and Insolvency and Companies Court Judges, and blue for District Judges. On ceremonial occasions more elaborate robes and wigs are worn.


See also

*
List of judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales The ordinary judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales are the Lord Justices of Appeal and Lady Justices of Appeal. These judges serve with the ''ex officio'' members of the court: * Lord Chief Justice * Master of the Rolls * Preside ...


References


External links


Information on Lord Justices of Appeal
{{Judiciary of England and Wales, state=collapsed Judges of the Court of Appeal (England and Wales)