The President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom is the head of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. The office is equivalent to the now-defunct position of Senior Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, also known as the Senior Law Lord, who was the highest ranking among the Lords of Appeal in Ordinary (the judges who exercised the judicial functions of the House of Lords). The current President is Baroness Hale of Richmond.
Video President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
History
From 1900 to 1969, when the Lord Chancellor was not present, a former Lord Chancellor would preside at judicial sittings of the House of Lords. If no former Lord Chancellor was present, the most senior Lord of Appeal in Ordinary present would preside, seniority being determined by rank in the peerage. In the years following World War II, it became less common for Lord Chancellors to have time to gain judicial experience in office, making it anomalous for former holders of the office to take precedence. As a result, on 22 May 1969, the rules were changed such that if the Lord Chancellor was not present (as was normally the case) the most senior Law Lord, by appointment as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary rather than peerage, would preside. In 1984, the system was amended to provide that judges be appointed Senior and Second Senior Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, rather than taking the roles by seniority. The purpose of the change was to allow an ailing Lord Diplock to step aside from presiding, yet remain a Law Lord.
On 1 October 2009 the judicial functions of the House of Lords were transferred to the new Supreme Court under the provisions of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. The Senior Law Lord, Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, and the Second Senior Law Lord became President and Deputy President of the new court. The same day, the Queen by warrant established a place for the President of the Supreme Court in the order of precedence immediately after the Lord Speaker (the Speaker of the House of Lords).
Maps President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
List of Senior Lords of Appeal in Ordinary
- Lord Reid (1969-1975)
- Lord Wilberforce (1975-1982)
- Lord Diplock (1982-1984)
- Lord Fraser of Tullybelton (1984-1985)
- Lord Scarman (1985-1986)
- Lord Keith of Kinkel (1986-1996)
- Lord Goff of Chieveley (1996-1998)
- Lord Browne-Wilkinson (1998-2000)
- Lord Bingham of Cornhill (2000-2008)
- Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers (2008 - 30 September 2009)
List of Presidents of the Supreme Court
- Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers (1 October 2009 - 30 September 2012)
- Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury (1 October 2012 - 4 September 2017)
- Baroness Hale of Richmond (5 September 2017 - present)
See also
- Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
- Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
- Senior President of Tribunals
- Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
- Lord President of the Court of Session
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia