Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the policy report by Patrick O’Brien and Ben Yong, Work in Judicial Retirement, published in June.

There is a longstanding convention that prohibits former holders of salaried judicial office from returning to private legal practice. This is reflected in the terms and conditions of service which apply on appointment to judicial office, which state that candidates accept appointment on the understanding that it is “intended for the remainder of a person’s professional life” and that “following termination of their appointment they will not return to private practice as a barrister or a solicitor".

The Government has noted the report, “Work in Judicial Retirement”, which relates to judges in the High Court and above and the longstanding convention prohibiting salaried judges from returning to legal practice. The Government has also noted the evidence of Lord Burnett, the then Lord Chief Justice, to the Justice Select Committee in 2018, that the convention “is part and parcel of ensuring, and always has been, that the standing of our judiciary is very high indeed.”