‘Let down and devalued’
A High Court judge has been reprimanded for “serious misconduct” after sending a handwritten love letter to a junior colleague.
Mr Justice Marcus Smith mentioned several “personal matters” in the letter and expressed his love for the colleague, asking about their feelings in return.
The letter made the colleague feel “distressed, angry, let down, and devalued”, leading them to report the matter and state that they did not want to work with the judge again or cross paths with him.
The colleague also revealed that before receiving the letter, the judge had asked them to go for walks with him and had confided in them about his relationship with his judicial leadership, according to the finding published by the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO).
Mr Justice Smith, a judge of the Chancery Division and president of the Competition Appeal Tribunal, acknowledged that the letter was clearly inappropriate and had caused his colleague significant emotional distress.
The judge explained that he had not intended to pressure or take advantage of his colleague, adding that he admired their intellect and enjoyed working with them.
“On reflection, he realised that he had been ignoring warning signs about his workload and health,” the finding states. “He had come to realise that the letter was a poorly framed attempt to reach out for support and to discuss his problems.”
Mr Justice Smith assured that there would be no repeat of such behaviour and that he would take immediate steps to address the underlying issues he believed had led to his actions.
A senior judge tasked with sanctioning Mr Justice Smith found that his actions amounted to “serious misconduct” and that he was “clearly expressing his love” and “wanted to take things further”.
The finding continued:
“His actions were part of a course of escalating conduct towards a junior member of staff who was in a very vulnerable position in relation to him. He had abused his position and crossed lines which should not be crossed. It was unsurprising that the member of staff had been distressed. The impact on the member of staff was likely to be lasting.”
The senior judge recommended a reprimand — the most serious sanction short of removal from office — given that Mr Justice Smith “had shown little insight into why his actions were so wrong”. The senior judge also found that he had “not acknowledged the romantic aspect of the letter, focusing instead on his own circumstances and feelings”.
The Lady Chief Justice and the Lord Chancellor subsequently endorsed the recommendation of a reprimand.
