Administration of Justice Act 1970

Part IU.K. Courts and Judges

High CourtU.K.

1 Redistribution of business among divisions of the High Court.U.K.

(1)–(5). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F1

(6)In accordance with the foregoing subsections—

(a)the enactments specified in Schedule 2 to this Act ([F2that is to say, the said Act of 1925 and other] enactments relative to the High Court, its jurisdiction, judges, divisions and business) shall be amended as shown in that Schedule; and

(b)references in any other enactment or document to the Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division, the President of that division, the principal probate registry, the principal (or senior) probate registrar and a probate registrar shall, so far as may be necessary to preserve the effect of the enactment or document, be construed respectively as references to the Family Division and to the President, principal registry, principal registrar and a registrar of that division.

(7),(8). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F1

2 Admiralty Court.E+W+N.I.

(1)–(4). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F3

(5). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F4

3 Commercial Court.E+W

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F5

F64. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .E+W

5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F7E+W

6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F8E+W

7—8.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F9E+W

Court of AppealE+W

9. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F10E+W

Patents and Registered Designs Appeal TribunalsE+W

10 Temporary additional judges.E+W

[F11(1)This section applies if both of the following conditions are met—

(a)the Lord Chancellor thinks that it is expedient, having regard to the state of business pending before the Registered Designs Appeal Tribunal and after consulting the Lord Chief Justice, for a person to be appointed to sit and act as an additional judge of the Tribunal (either alone or with a judge of the High Court who is a judge of the Tribunal);

(b)the Lord Chancellor requests the Lord Chief Justice to make such an appointment.

(1A)The Lord Chief Justice may, after consulting the Lord Chancellor, appoint one of the following persons as mentioned in subsection (1)(a)—

(a)a judge of the Court of Appeal;

F12(b). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(c)one of Her Majesty's Counsel.

(1B)An appointment under this section is—

(a)for such period, or

(b)for the purpose of hearing such appeals,

as the Lord Chief Justice determines, after consulting the Lord Chancellor.]

(2)A person appointed to [F13the] Tribunal under this section shall, while sitting and acting as aforesaid, have all the jurisdiction of, but shall not otherwise be deemed to be, a judge of the Tribunal.

(3)The Lord Chancellor may pay to a person appointed to [F13the] Tribunal under this section (other than a judge of the Court of Appeal) such remuneration as he may determine with the approval of the Minister for the Civil Service; and any such remuneration shall be included in the expenses of the Tribunal.

(4)In this section . . . F14“the Registered Designs Appeal Tribunal” means the Appeal Tribunal constituted under section 28 of the M1Registered Designs Act 1949 [F15as amended by section 24 of the M2Administration of Justice Act 1969].

[F16(4A)The Lord Chief Justice may nominate a judicial office holder (as defined in section 109(4) of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005) to exercise his functions under this section.]

(5)In subsection (8) of the said section 85 and subsection (8) of the said section 28 (which confer power on the two Tribunals to make rules about procedure etc.), there shall in each case be inserted at the end of the subsection the words “including right of audience”.