Page 72 - Judicial Diversity Update report

claims or different rights at stake – are far less likely to progress to higher
judicial office. It is important to understand why experience gained in this
capacity does not translate into greater success in senior exercises.

A route through the tribunals

3.22. The tribunals represent a large pool for senior appointments – both those
serving in salaried roles and those gaining experience through fee-paid sitting.
The nature of the work varies considerably from chamber to chamber, with
judging at the First Tier in some chambers involving more questions of law,
others more questions of fact. Upper Tribunal judges deal exclusively with
matters of law, many in cases similar to those considered by High Court judges.

3.23. The Working Party has taken evidence from judges in entry-level positions,
who have struggled to secure promotion from tribunal roles. The sheer numbers
of First Tier Tribunal judges mean that promotion is only realistic for a
minority. While an organogram might indicate otherwise, the expert nature of
the work of the Upper Tribunal means that it does not provide a natural route
of advancement for most First Tier Tribunal judges.

3.24. The data suggests that there is limited value in fee-paid sitting in the First
Tier Tribunal for those who seek higher appointment; a minority of senior
judges have been elevated through this route.

3.25. It has been repeatedly suggested to us that salaried appointment in the First
Tier Tribunal can function as a ‘trap’ for aspirant senior judges, who apply
expecting it to serve as a first step and then go nowhere. Unable to return to
practice, they find themselves stuck doing entry-level work which remains of a
certain type and then is not valued for the purpose of advancement. When they
apply for new roles, their years of tribunal work means that they are further
away in time from their experience in practice, which may have been assessed
as being of greater value for the purpose of higher judicial appointment.

3.26. We received evidence suggesting that, in the limited number of cases where
it does happen, promotion to the Upper Tribunal is achieved despite sitting
experience in the First Tier Tribunal rather than because of it. Indeed, we were
told that the only real ‘promotion’ within the tribunals is from fee-paid to
salaried judge, within the same jurisdiction.

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