Supreme Court starts hunt for two new justices

Follows retirement of Lord Lloyd-Jones and Lady Arden

The Supreme Court today fired the starting pistol on a fresh recruitment drive following the retirement of justices Lord Lloyd-Jones and Lady Arden.

The top court is seeking applications from those with “truly exceptional intellectual and legal ability”, as well as “sound judgment and decisiveness”. Those considering popping in a CV will need to have been a judge for two years or a lawyer for 15 years — so ambitious LLB students need not apply.

Welshman Lord Lloyd-Jones stepped down last month after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70, while Lady Arden was able to stay on until her 75th birthday — which she celebrated earlier this year — due to the fact she was already a High Court judge when the retirement age was lowered in 1995. They were appointed to the court in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

With Lord Lloyd-Jones and Lady Arden now out the picture, the ten-strong bench is currently made up of nine men and one woman, all of whom are white.

For those considering applying and who meet the minimum statutory criteria, the Supreme Court is offering “familiarisation visits” which comprise a tour of the court building and a private meeting of up to one hour with a current justice not directly involved in the appointments process to “discuss the nature, challenges and highlights of the role”.

Lord Reed, the court’s president, officially launched the recruitment campaign via a short video — be sure to check out the ‘chill-out vibes’ backing track — published to YouTube.

Fancy sticking in application? You have until 4 March.