Member

Let me move on to something that is more important than the finances of judges. The system is at capacity. Designated family judge lists are full, as I understand it—and full of the most serious, difficult and horrid care cases, which are the daily diet of a designated family judge. Not only is the system at capacity; what about the individual capacity of each judge, emotionally and psychologically, to be given an extra caseload? I hope that the noble and learned Lord or the Minister will arrange a meeting between His Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals Service, the Ministry of Justice and the President of the Family Division to discuss this matter. I was really pleased to see the enthusiasm of the noble Lord, Lord Carlile, for potentially discovering extra judicial time, but that assertion needs investigating. As the Lady Chief Justice said, these are real people.