Office for Judicial Complaints (Annual Report 2012-13)

(Limited Text - Ministerial Extracts only)

Thursday 27th June 2013 Written Statements

[The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Chris Grayling)]

With the concurrence of the Lord Chief Justice, I will today publish the seventh annual report of the Office for Judicial Complaints (OJC), which provides support to the Lord Chief Justice and myself in our joint responsibility for the system of judicial complaints and discipline.

Over the past year the OJC has seen the volume of complaints it receives increase by a third; receiving over 2,100 complaints and 550 written inquiries. I am pleased, therefore, that the OJC continues to deliver a good service; providing complainants with a first substantive response within 15 working days in 93% of all cases it receives.

Subject to parliamentary approval, this annual report will be the last published by the OJC prior to the introduction of the Judicial Discipline (Prescribed Procedures) Regulations 2013. The new regulations are the product of a review conducted by a working group, led by Lord Toulson, and seek to establish a more efficient and streamlined process for handling complaints about the conduct of judicial office holders.

The introduction of the new regulations will also see the OJC become the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO). I am confident that the JCIO will build on the solid foundations laid by the OJC over the last seven years and, in tandem with the introduction of the new regulations, will deliver further improvements and efficiencies in the handling of judicial conduct complaints.

Copies of the report are available in the Libraries of both Houses, the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office. Copies of the report are also available on the internet at: http://judicialcomplaints.judiciary.gov.uk/publications.htm.