Principles
11. The Board describes itself as committed to the
principles of appointment on merit and to the well-informed choice
of individuals who, through their abilities, experience and qualities,
match the requirements of the post. Successful candidates will
be those who appear to be best qualified, regardless of gender,
ethnic background, marital status, sexual orientation, political
affiliation, religion or disability, except where the disability
prevents the fulfilment of the physical requirements of the office
and reasonable adjustment cannot be made.[2]
12. Scottish Ministers have given the Board the task
of establishing its own working arrangements, but have given it
guidance that procedures should include that:
- vacancies are publicly advertised
- all eligible applicants must be considered
- applicants should be considered against objective
criteria
- legally qualified members must be satisfied that
any candidate to be recommended for appointment has the requisite
professional competence for the post
- candidates must be recommended on merit
- no candidate should be recommended without having
been interviewed
- Ministers are provided with a written report
on all competitions and that candidates interviewed should be
reported on
- feedback is provided to applicants, if requested,
although it is for the Board to decide the method and extent of
feedback given to applicants.
Other matters
13. The Board also acknowledges a number of other
considerations:[3]
- Equal opportunities: The
Board maintains statistical data on all applicants, with particular
reference to gender, ethnic background and disability, to assist
with the monitoring of diversity in the judicial appointments
process. This is done in such a way as to preserve confidentiality
of applicants.
- Confidentiality: The
proceedings of the Board with regard to individual applicants
are entirely confidential. Information provided by applicants
and their referees are not disclosed and only the names of those
candidates appointed to judicial office are made public.
- Conflict of interest: Board
members may not act as referees for candidates and do not participate
in the selection process where there may be a conflict of interest.
Further, whilst holding appointment, Board members are not eligible
for consideration for judicial appointment.
14. A list of the Chairman and Members of the Board,
together with brief biographies, may be found at Appendix 1. Appendix
2 lists the criteria applied by the Board when recommending candidates
for appointment.
1 Modernising Government - Lord Falconer appointed
Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, 10 Downing
St press notice, 12/06/03 Back
2
Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland website, www.judicialappointmentsscotland.gov.uk. Back
3
ibid Back
