MINISTERIAL FOREWORD
We are pleased to publish a further consultation paper in our programme for reforming Scotland's justice system. We have already made significant progress in modernising the way the courts operate. This is important as an efficient and effective court system is key to the protection of everyone in our communities throughout Scotland.
Much of the reform to date has focused on the processes that affect people when they come into contact with the courts. We have made significant progress, but more needs to be done and work, most notably on the reform of summary justice, is continuing.
The proposals which we are publishing in this paper concern the judiciary. All those who preside over the courts are in a unique position to influence how justice is administered. We want to make sure that our judicial system is organised in such a way that allows our judges and sheriffs to exercise their influence to bring about improvements for those served by the court system.
Scotland is well served by its judges and sheriffs, not only through their judicial work, but also through their contribution to the work of various public bodies, such as the Parole Board and the Sentencing Commission, and in the development of the law through membership of working groups. Our judges and sheriffs have contributed significantly to our programme of reform. The reforms of the High Court which we introduced in April 2005 were based to a large extent on the recommendations of Lord Bonomy's Review Group, and our work on reforming summary justice has been greatly assisted by the efforts of the committee chaired by Sheriff Principal McInnes QC. Individual judges and sheriffs are already contributing to the modernisation agenda by embracing an active case management role in both the criminal and civil courts.
We are very encouraged by the way judges and sheriffs have so readily co-operated with these reforms. This indicates an appetite among the judiciary to improve the system for the benefit of its users. We want to build on this, and give the judiciary greater opportunities to secure the speedier and more efficient and effective disposal of the business in the courts. They are uniquely placed to do this, but the way the judiciary are presently organised works against their developing and implementing consistent policies throughout the system. And the principle of judicial independence rightly restricts the influence which the Executive has over the way the judiciary carry out their judicial functions.
There are also aspects of the way the judicial system is currently administered that do not sit entirely comfortably with the principle of judicial independence. These proposals for change will modernise the organisation and leadership of Scotland's judiciary, reduce the involvement of the Executive in the day to day administration of the system and introduce a scheme for dealing with judicial misconduct. Modernising the judiciary in line with these proposals will strengthen it as a body and make it more effective as a leader in the development of our court system in the interests of Scotland's communities. Our intention is to bring forward changes in the law to give effect to the proposals we decide to implement after this consultation before the end of the present Parliament.
The consultation paper deals with a number of other matters related to the judiciary.
There are proposals to place the reformed judicial appointments system on a statutory basis. This is a commitment of our Partnership Agreement, and we will bring forward a bill to achieve this during the course of the current Parliament.
The consultation also proposes a standard approach to the removal of judges. There are at present a number of provisions in statute dealing with the removal of judges and sheriffs. We propose to move to a common approach and bring forward legislation in 2006.
The final element of our proposals is about who should be eligible for appointment as a judge of the Court of Session. We need to keep these matters under review and ensure that existing arrangements, some of which have been in place for many years, remain relevant in a modern Scotland.
We believe that this an exciting and far reaching set of proposals which will strengthen not only the judiciary's constitutional independence, but also its capacity to bring about real change within the system.
We look forward to hearing your views on what is proposed.
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Cathy Jamieson MSP
Minister for Justice
February 2006 | Colin Boyd QC
Lord Advocate |