Supplementary written evidence submitted
by The Fawcett Society
PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS
OF THE
JUDICIARY
I was very pleased to have the opportunity to appear
before the Committee on 18 November to give evidence about judicial
appointments.
The Committee requested further information about
the link between composition and public confidence in the judiciary.
Fawcett's work on the criminal justice system indicates that there
is a strong relationship between confidence in the legal system
and representation of the judiciary. As part of the Commission
on Women and the Criminal Justice System, a one year inquiry chaired
by Vera Baird QC MP examining women's experiences of the system,
we have taken evidence from a broad range of organisations and
individuals.
Victims groups told the Commission that victims perceive
the judiciary as white, male and middle-aged. According to them,
this leads to a lack of confidence in the system and can deter
victims, particularly women, from reporting offences. One organisation
which provides advice to victims said: "Female judges would,
in most cases, provide a less intimidating courtroom." (Evidence
to the Commission on Women and the Criminal Justice System).
An academic institute which carries out research
on abuse said: "Whilst there has been some (welcome) change,
the age, sex and social experience of many of the judiciary means
that they continue to judge women on the basis of stereotypes
and mistaken `common sense'—such as battered women should
just leave, and young women should be more careful who they associate
with, how much they drink etc. This means that directions to the
jury may explicitly or implicitly reinforce stereotypes about
both femininity and masculinity which are a form of prejudice."
(Evidence to the Commission on Women and the Criminal Justice
System)
Practitioners felt that women do not have equal opportunities
to progress in the judiciary and that it should be more diverse
in order to better serve the wider community. A Probation Officer
said: "Women and men do not have the same opportunities in
the legal sector where most judges are men of the public school/Oxbridge
set. The system needs to reflect the social/gender/ethnic make
up of the population." (Evidence to the Commission on Women
and the Criminal Justice System).
A magistrate told us: "In many ways it is an
incestuous system. The public have confidence in the abilities
of women in all walks of life. Women tend to provide an `extra
dimension' to any role they undertake. More women would reduce
the `ganging up' tendency by males." (Evidence to the Commission
on Women and the Criminal Justice System).
The evidence we gathered is supported by the findings
of Professor Hazel Genn who carried out empirical research on
public attitudes to the legal system (Paths to Justice 1999) which
shows that lack of representation has an adverse effect on public
confidence in the system. In Professor Genn's large scale survey,
66% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement
that "most judges are out of touch with ordinary people's
lives". Professor Genn concluded that "although the
public regard the courts as important, there is some lack of confidence
in the fairness of hearings, a belief that the courts serve the
interests of the wealthy, and that the judiciary are remote and
out of touch."(p246)
It is not just in the legal system that there is
demand for representation in public life. MORI research for the
Hansard Society about the low levels of voting in the 2001 General
Election found that "There is . . . strong support for more
candidates who reflect the composition of society, in the sense
of being demographically similar (more women, more younger people,
more ethnic minority people)", (Hansard Society "None
of the Above: Non-voters and the 2001 Election" December
2001). Other research carried out by MORI for the British Council
shows that there is strong public consensus amongst both men and
women about the need for more women MPs. Three quarters of women
and two thirds of men say there are too few women MPs ("Attitudes
to Women Politicians" The British Council 30 April 2002).
Dr Katherine Rake
Director, The Fawcett Society
December 2003
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