Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales

"Lord Chief Justice" redirects here. For the head of the judiciary of Northern Ireland, see Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland.

Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
The Judiciary of England and Wales
Incumbent The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd since 1 October 2013
Style	The Right Honourable
Nominator	Judicial Appointments Commission
Appointer	UK Monarch on recommendation of Prime Minister and Lord Chancellor, who are in turn given recommendations by a selection panel.
Formation	1 November 1875

The Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary and President of the Courts of England and Wales. Historically, he was the second-highest judge of the Courts of England and Wales, after the Lord Chancellor, but became the top judge as a result of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, which removed the judicial functions from the office of Lord Chancellor and altered the duties of the Lord Chief Justice and changed the relationship between the two offices. The Lord Chief Justice is also President of the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal.

The Lord Chief Justice's equivalent in Scotland is the Lord President of the Court of Session, who also holds the post of Lord Justice-General in the High Court of Justiciary.

The current Lord Chief Justice is Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, who took over the role on 1 October 2013.

History

Originally, each of the three high common law courts, the King's Bench, the Court of Common Pleas, and the Court of the Exchequer, had its own chief justice: the Lord Chief Justice, Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, and Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer. Although the Court of the King's (or Queen's) Bench had existed since 1234, the title of chief justice was not used until 1268. In the intermediary period, one of the justices would be considered the senior judge, and hold a position similar to that later held by the chief justice. The three courts became divisions of the High Court in 1875, and following the deaths of the Lord Chief Justice and Lord Chief Baron, the Chief Justice of Common Pleas creating a single Lord Chief Justice of England.

The suffix "and Wales", now found in statutes and elsewhere, was unilaterally appended by Lord Bingham between 1996 and 2000. There is also a Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland.

Constitutional Reform Act 2005

The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (CRA) made the Lord Chief Justice the President of the Courts of England and Wales, vesting the office with many of the powers formerly held by the Lord Chancellor. While the Lord Chief Justice retains the role of President of the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal, the CRA separated the role of President of the Queen's Bench Division. The first Lord Chief Justice to act as head of the judiciary under the provisions of the CRA was Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers. The CRA also provides that the Lord Chief Justice is chosen by a specially appointed committee convened by the Judicial Appointments Commission.

Lord Chief Justices of England, King's (Queen's) Bench, to 1875

Image	Chief Justice	From	Until	Remarks
	William de Raley	1234	1239
	Sir Stephen de Segrave	1239	1241
	William of York	1241	1247
	Henry of Bath	1249	1251
	Sir Gilbert of Seagrave	1251	1253
	Henry of Bath	1253	1260
	Sir William of Wilton	1261	1263
	Nicholas de Turri	1265	1267
	Sir Robert de Briwes	1268	6 November 1269
	Richard of Staines	6 November 1269	1273
	Martin of Littlebury	1273	1274
	Ralph de Hengham	1274	1290
	Gilbert de Thornton	1290	1296
	Sir Roger Brabazon	1296	March 1316
	Sir William Inge	March 1316	15 June 1317
	Sir Henry le Scrope	15 June 1317	September 1323
	Hervey de Stanton	September 1323	21 March 1324
	Sir Geoffrey le Scrope	21 March 1324	1 May 1329
	Sir Robert de Malberthorp	1 May 1329	28 October 1329
	Sir Henry le Scrope	28 October 1329	19 December 1330
	Sir Geoffrey le Scrope	19 December 1330	28 March 1332
	Sir Richard de Willoughby	28 March 1332	20 September 1332
	Sir Geoffrey le Scrope	20 September 1332	10 September 1333
	Sir Richard de Willoughby	10 September 1333	1337
	Sir Geoffrey le Scrope	1337	October 1338
	Sir Richard de Willoughby	October 1338	21 July 1340
	Sir Robert Parning	21 July 1340	8 January 1341
	Sir William Scott	8 January 1341	26 November 1346
	Sir William de Thorpe	26 November 1346	26 October 1350
	Sir William de Shareshull	26 October 1350	24 May 1361
	Sir Henry Green	24 May 1361	29 October 1365
	Sir John Knyvet	29 October 1365	15 July 1372
	Sir John de Cavendish	15 July 1372	14 June 1381	murdered in the Peasants' Revolt
	Sir Robert Tresilian	22 June 1381	17 November 1387
	Sir Walter Clopton	31 January 1388	21 October 1400
	Sir William Gascoigne	15 November 1400	29 March 1413
	Sir William Hankford	29 March 1413	12 December 1423
	Sir William Cheyne	21 January 1424	20 January 1439
	Sir John Juyn	20 January 1439	24 March 1440
	Sir John Hody	13 April 1440	25 January 1442
	Sir John Fortescue	25 January 1442	13 May 1461
	Sir John Markham	13 May 1461	23 January 1469
	Sir Thomas Billing	23 January 1469	5 May 1481
	Sir William Hussey	7 May 1481	8 September 1495
	Sir John Fineux	24 November 1495	23 January 1526
	Sir John FitzJames	23 January 1526	21 January 1539
	Sir Edward Montagu	21 January 1539	9 November 1545
	Sir Richard Lyster	9 November 1545	21 March 1552
	Sir Roger Cholmeley	21 March 1552	4 October 1553
	Sir Thomas Bromley	4 October 1553	11 June 1555
	Sir William Portman	11 June 1555	8 May 1557
	Sir Edward Saunders	8 May 1557	22 January 1559
	Sir Robert Catlyn	22 January 1559	8 November 1574
	Sir Christopher Wray	8 November 1574	2 June 1592
	Sir John Popham	2 June 1592	25 June 1607
	Sir Thomas Fleming	25 June 1607	25 October 1613
	Sir Edward Coke	25 October 1613	16 November 1616
	Sir Henry Montagu	16 November 1616	29 January 1621
	Sir James Ley	29 January 1621	26 January 1625
	Sir Ranulph Crewe	26 January 1625	5 February 1627
	Sir Nicholas Hyde	5 February 1627	24 October 1631
	Sir Thomas Richardson	24 October 1631	4 February 1635	died in office
	Sir John Bramston	14 April 1635	31 October 1642
	Sir Robert Heath	31 October 1642	October 1645
	Sir Henry Rolle	12 October 1648	15 June 1655
	John Glynne	15 June 1655	17 January 1660	Knighted in 1660
	Sir Richard Newdigate	17 January 1660	1 October 1660
	Sir Robert Foster	21 October 1660	4 October 1663	First Chief Justice after the Restoration; died in office
	Sir Robert Hyde	19 October 1663	1 May 1665	Died in office
	Sir John Kelynge	21 November 1665	9 May 1671	Died in office
	Sir Matthew Hale	18 May 1671	20 February 1676	Formerly Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer 1660–1671
	Sir Richard Raynsford	12 April 1676	31 May 1678
	Sir William Scroggs	31 May 1678	11 April 1681
	Sir Francis Pemberton	11 April 1681	28 September 1683	Later Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in 1683
	Sir George Jeffreys	28 September 1683	23 October 1685	Baron Jefffreys 1685; Lord Chancellor 1685–1688
	Sir Edward Herbert	23 October 1685	22 April 1687	Later Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1687–1689
	Sir Robert Wright	22 April 1687	17 April 1689	Briefly Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in April 1687
	Sir John Holt	17 April 1689	5 March 1710	Died in office
	Thomas Parker, 1st Earl of Macclesfield	11 March 1710	15 May 1718	Baron Parker from 1714; Regent of Great Britain from 1 August to 18 September 1714; later Lord Chancellor 1718–1725 and Earl of Macclesfield from 1721; impeached for corruption in 1725
75px	Sir John Pratt	15 May 1718	24 February 1725	Interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1721
	Robert Raymond, 1st Baron Raymond	2 March 1725	31 October 1733	Previously Attorney General 1720–1724; Baron Raymond from 1731; died in office
	Philip Yorke, 1st Baron Hardwicke	31 October 1733	8 June 1737	Previously Attorney General 1724–1733; Baron Hardwicke from 1733; later Lord Chancellor 1737–1756 and Earl of Hardwicke from 1754
	Sir William Lee	8 June 1737	8 April 1754	Interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1754; died in office
	Sir Dudley Ryder	2 May 1754	25 May 1756	Previously Attorney General 1737–1754; died in office
75px	William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield	8 November 1756	4 June 1788	Previously Attorney General 1754–1756; Baron Mansfield from 1756; Earl of Mansfield from 1776; Lord Speaker in 1783
	Lloyd Kenyon, 1st Baron Kenyon	4 June 1788	4 April 1802	Previously Attorney General 1782–1783 1783–1784 and Master of the Rolls 1784–1788; Baron Kenyon from 1788; died in office
	Edward Law, 1st Baron Ellenborough	11 April 1802	2 November 1818	Previously Attorney General 1801–1802; Baron Ellenborough from 1802
	Charles Abbott, 1st Baron Tenterden	2 November 1818	4 November 1832	Baron Tenterden from 1827; interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1827; died in office
	Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman	4 November 1832	5 March 1850	Previously Attorney General 1830–1832; Baron Denman from 1834; interim Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1834
	John Campbell, 1st Baron Campbell	5 March 1850	24 June 1859	Previously Attorney General 1834 and 1835–1841; ennobled as Baron Campbell when Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1841; later Lord Chancellor 1859–1861
	Sir Alexander Cockburn, Bt	24 June 1859	1 November 1875	Knighted 1850; previously Attorney General 1851–1852 1852–1856 and Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1856–1859; 12th Baronet from 1858; Queen Victoria refused to make him a peer in 1864 as "this peerage has been more than once previously refused upon the ground of the notoriously bad moral character of the Chief Justice"

Lord Chief Justices of England (later England and Wales) 1875–present

Image	Lord Chief Justice	From	Until	Remarks
	Sir Alexander Cockburn, Bt	1 November 1875	20 November 1880	died in office
	John Coleridge, 1st Baron Coleridge	29 November 1880	14 June 1894	Previously Attorney General 1871–1873 and Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1873–1880; Baron Coleridge from 1874; died in office
	Lord Russell of Killowen	11 July 1894	10 August 1900	Previously Attorney General 1886 1892–1894; Baron Russell of Killowen from 1894; first Catholic Lord Chief Justice; died in office
	Richard Webster, 1st Viscount Alverstone	24 October 1900	21 October 1913	Previously Attorney-General 1885–1886 1886–1892 1895–1900 and Master of the Rolls in 1900; Baron Alverstone from 1900; in retirement, Viscount Alverstone from 1913
	Rufus Isaacs, 1st Earl of Reading	21 October 1913	8 March 1921	Previously Attorney General 1910–1913; Baron Reading from 1914; Viscount Reading from 1916; Earl of Reading from 1917; later Viceroy of India 1921–1925 and Marquess of Reading from 1926; first Jewish Lord Chief Justice
	Alfred Lawrence, 1st Baron Trevethin	15 April 1921	2 March 1922	Baron Trevethin from August 1921
	Gordon Hewart, Baron Hewart	8 March 1922	12 October 1940	Previously Attorney General 1919–1922; Baron Hewart from 1922; in retirement Viscount Hewart from 1940
75px	Thomas Inskip, 1st Viscount Caldecote	14 October 1940	23 January 1946	Previously Attorney General 1928–1929 and 1932–1936 and Lord Chancellor 1939–1940; Viscount Caldecote from 1939
	Rayner Goddard, Baron Goddard	23 January 1946	29 September 1958	Previously a law lord, Baron Goddard, from 1944
	Hubert Parker, Baron Parker of Waddington	29 September 1958	20 April 1971	Baron Parker of Waddington from 1958
	John Widgery, Baron Widgery	20 April 1971	15 April 1980	Baron Widgery from 1971
	Geoffrey Lane, Baron Lane	15 April 1980	27 April 1992	Previously a law lord, Baron Lane, from 1979
	Peter Taylor, Baron Taylor of Gosforth	27 April 1992	4 June 1996	Baron Taylor of Gosforth from 1992
	Thomas Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill	4 June 1996	6 June 2000	Baron Bingham of Cornhill from 1996; first Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales; Master of the Rolls 1992–1996; Senior Law Lord 2000–2008;
	Harry Woolf, Baron Woolf	6 June 2000	30 September 2005	Previously a law lord, Baron Woolf, from 1992; Master of the Rolls from 1996–2000
	Nicholas Phillips, Baron Phillips of Worth Matravers	30 September 2005	1 October 2008	Previously a law lord, Baron Phillips of Worth Matravers, from 1999; Master of the Rolls 2000–2005; later Senior Law Lord 2008–2009 and President of the Supreme Court 2009–2012
	Igor Judge, Baron Judge	1 October 2008	30 September 2013
	John Thomas, Baron Thomas of Cwmgiedd	1 October 2013	Incumbent

Bibliography

• Campbell, John (1874), Lives of the Chief Justices of England, in four volumes (two additional volumes were a "Continuation by Sir Joseph Arnould – Late Judge of the High Court of Bombay"), 3rd ed. London, John Murray 1874.