Constitutional Reform Act 2005

Valid from 03/04/2006

Disciplinary powers U.K.

108 Disciplinary powers U.K.

(1) Any power of the Lord Chancellor to remove a person from an office listed in Schedule 14 is exercisable only after the Lord Chancellor has complied with prescribed procedures (as well as any other requirements to which the power is subject).

(2) The Lord Chief Justice may exercise any of the following powers but only with the agreement of the Lord Chancellor and only after complying with prescribed procedures.

(3) The Lord Chief Justice may give a judicial office holder formal advice, or a formal warning or reprimand, for disciplinary purposes (but this section does not restrict what he may do informally or for other purposes or where any advice or warning is not addressed to a particular office holder).

(4) He may suspend a person from a judicial office for any period during which any of the following applies—

(a) the person is subject to criminal proceedings;

(b) the person is serving a sentence imposed in criminal proceedings;

(c) the person has been convicted of an offence and is subject to prescribed procedures in relation to the conduct constituting the offence.

(5) He may suspend a person from a judicial office for any period if—

(a) the person has been convicted of a criminal offence,

(b) it has been determined under prescribed procedures that the person should not be removed from office, and

(c) it appears to the Lord Chief Justice with the agreement of the Lord Chancellor that the suspension is necessary for maintaining confidence in the judiciary.

(6) He may suspend a person from office as a senior judge for any period during which the person is subject to proceedings for an Address.

(7) He may suspend the holder of an office listed in Schedule 14 for any period during which the person—

(a) is under investigation for an offence, or

(b) is subject to prescribed procedures.

(8) While a person is suspended under this section from any office he may not perform any of the functions of the office (but his other rights as holder of the office are not affected).

109 Disciplinary powers: interpretation U.K.

(1) This section has effect for the purposes of section 108.

(2) A person is subject to criminal proceedings if in any part of the United Kingdom proceedings against him for an offence have been begun and have not come to an end, and the times when proceedings are begun and come to an end for the purposes of this subsection are such as may be prescribed.

(3) A person is subject to proceedings for an Address from the time when notice of a motion is given in each House of Parliament for an Address for the removal of the person from office, until the earliest of the following events—

(a) either notice is withdrawn;

(b) either motion is amended so that it is no longer a motion for an address for removal of the person from office;

(c) either motion is withdrawn, lapses or is disagreed to;

(d) where an Address is presented by each House, a message is brought to each House from Her Majesty in answer to the Address.

(4) “Judicial office” means—

(a) office as a senior judge, or

(b) an office listed in Schedule 14;

and “judicial office holder” means the holder of a judicial office.

(5) “Senior judge” means any of these—

(a) Master of the Rolls;

(b) President of the Queen's Bench Division;

(c) President of the Family Division;

(d) Chancellor of the High Court;

(e) Lord Justice of Appeal;

(f) puisne judge of the High Court.

(6) “Sentence” includes any sentence other than a fine (and “serving” is to be read accordingly).

(7) The times when a person becomes and ceases to be subject to prescribed procedures for the purposes of section 108(4) or (7) are such as may be prescribed.

(8) “Under investigation for an offence” has such meaning as may be prescribed.