WOMEN
MEMBERS OF THE UK JUDICIARY
Although
all judicial offices were opened to women in 1919, it was not until
1945 that a woman judge, Sybil Campbell, was appointed in England. Below
are figures for current women judges in the United Kingdom. A comparison
of the figures for England and Wales (validated by the Lord Chancellors'
Department on 1 March 2003) with those of the past decade (from Karen
Ross, Women at the top 2000: Cracking the public sector glass ceiling,
Hansard Society (2000), p.10) shows that all areas have improved save
that of High Court Judges. Looking specifically at Northern Ireland,
according to research by the Law Centre NI, up to March 2005 women held
18% of judicial posts above tribunal level and made up 8% of Silk in
Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland still has no female High Court judges
and compares very unfavourably to England and Wales where 8% of their
High Court judges are women. The County Courts do not fare much better
with only nine women judges compared to thirty men. Resident Magistrates
are similary disproportionately male with only three female full-time
Resident Magistrates compared with fifteen men and five female deputy
Resident Magistrates compared to thirteen men. Out of a total of 63
Queen's Counsel in the province, only five were women. The contrast
between the UK as a whole and the international stage is also striking.
The Law Centre report notes that women in Canada, Finland and France
make up 26%, 46% and 54% respectively of the judiciary.
Table
1: Gender breakdown of UK judiciary, April 2010
|
Rank
|
Women
|
Men
|
%
women
|
|
|
|
Supreme Court
Justices
|
1
|
11
|
8
|
|
Heads
of Division
|
0
|
..5
|
0
|
|
Lord Justices
|
3
|
34
|
8
|
|
High Court
Judges
|
15
|
92
|
14
|
|
Circuit Judges
|
94.
|
548
|
14
|
|
District Judges
(inc. Family Division)
|
104
|
340
|
23
|
|
District
Judges (Magistrates)
|
19
|
.82
|
18.8
|
|
Recorders
|
153.
|
1023.
|
13
|
|
|
|
Supreme Court
|
4
|
28
|
12.5
|
|
Principal
Sheriffs
|
0
|
..6
|
0
|
|
Sheriffs (Part-time)
|
28
(19)
|
114
(59).
|
19.7
(24)..
|
|
|
|
High
Court
|
0
|
..8
|
.0
|
|
County Court
|
5
|
12
|
29
|
|
District Court
|
2
|
..2
|
50
|
|
Resident
Magistrates
|
5
|
16
|
23.8
|
.
Table 2: Senior women judges in the UK, April 2010
|
|
|
Date
appointed
|
|
|
|
Dame Elizabeth
Butler-Sloss
|
President,
Family Division
|
1999
|
|
Baroness Brenda
Hale
|
Justice of
the Supreme Court
|
2009
|
|
Dame Mary
Howarth
|
Lord Justice
|
2000
|
|
Dame Jane
Hilary Smith
|
Lord Justice
|
2002
|
|
Dame Heather
Carol Hallett
|
Lord Justice
|
2005
|
|
Dame Sonia
Proudman
|
High Court
(chanceryY
|
2001
|
|
Dame Anne
Rafferty
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2000
|
|
Dame Laura
Cox
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2002
|
|
Dame Elizabeth
Glouster
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2004
|
|
Dame Linda
Dobbs
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2004
|
|
Dame Caroline
Jane Swift
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2005
|
|
Dame Elizabeth
Slade
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2008
|
|
Dame Victoria
Sharpe
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2009
|
|
Dame Nicola
Velfor Davies
|
High Court
(Queen's Bench)
|
2010
|
|
Dame Mary
Hogg
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
1995
|
|
Dame Jill
Black
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
1999
|
|
Dame Anna
Hamilton Pauffley
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
2003
|
|
Dame Florence
Baron
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
2003
|
|
Dame Julia
Macur
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
2005
|
|
Dame Elanor
Warwick King
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
2008
|
|
Dame Judith
Parker
|
High Court
(Family Division)
|
2008
|
|
|
|
Ann,
Lady Paton
|
Supreme Court
|
2000
|
|
Ann,
Lady Smith
|
Supreme Court
|
2001
|
|
Lady Leeona
Dorian
|
Supreme Court
|
2005
|
|
Lady Linda
Clark
|
Supreme Court
|
2006
|
|
Lady Valerie
Stacy
|
Supreme Court
|
2009
|
|
|
|
Corinne Philpott
|
County Court
|
1998
|
|
Denise Kennedy
|
County Court
|
2000
|
|
Loughran
|
County Court
|
2004
|
|
McReynolds
|
County Court
|
2004
|
|
Smyth
|
County Court
|
2010
|
|
Ruth Collins
|
District Court
|
2000
|
|
Isobel Brownlie
|
District Court
|
1997
|
|
Rosie Watters
|
Resident Magistrate
|
1998
|
|
Rosalie Prytherch
|
Resident Magistrate
|
2005
|
|
Patricia Kelly
|
Resident Magistrate
|
1997
|
|
Amanda Henderson
|
Resident Magistrate
|
2005
|
|
Fiona Bagnall
|
Resident
Magistrate |
2003
|
