PRACTICE — Judges — Court dress — Introduction of new civil robes to be worn without wigs

Practice Direction (Court Dress) (No 5); [2008] WLR (D) 285

Sup Ct: Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers CJ: 31 July 2008

A new civil robe, to be worn without a wig, would be introduced for judges in civil cases from 1 October 2008.
Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers CJ so stated in the Supreme Court when handing down a practice direction on court dress.

LORD PHILLIPS CJ said that it is ordered as follows:
1 The following direction in relation to court dress to be worn by the judiciary of England and Wales when sitting in court, whether in public or private, will take effect on 1 October 2008.
Civil jurisdiction

2 Save where the relevant head of division, the senior presiding judge or the President of the Court of Protection agrees for good reason that a gown should not be worn:
(a) All judges and members of the High Court Masters Group, (other than circuit judges) will wear the new civil gown without a wig (or bands, wing collar or collarette).
(b) Circuit judges will wear their existing gown and lilac tippet without a wig (or bands, wing collar or collarette).
(c) Barristers or solicitors sitting in a judicial capacity will wear their practitioners’ dress without a wig.
(d) District judges retiring after 1 October and sitting as deputy district judges will wear the new civil gown without a wig (or bands, wing collar or collarette).

3 Tabs at the neck of the new civil gown will indicate the rank of judge as follows: (a) Court of Appeal – gold tabs; (b) High Court – red tabs; (c) members of the High Court Masters Group – pink tabs; and (d) district judges – blue tabs.

4 Members of the High Court Masters Group include masters of the Chancery or Queen’s Bench Division, district judges of the Principal Registry of the Family Division, bankruptcy registrars and costs judges.
Criminal jurisdiction

5 There will be no change of court dress worn in the exercise of the criminal jurisdiction save that High Court judges will wear their winter robes in winter and summer alike.

6 This practice direction amends Practice Direction (Criminal Proceedings: Consolidation) [2002] 1 WLR 2870 handed down by Lord Woolf CJ on 8 July 2002, as amended. A new paragraph I.1.2 shall be inserted after paragraph I.1.1 to state – “High Court judges hearing criminal cases shall wear the winter criminal robe year-round. Scarlet summer robes are no longer issued or worn.”

7 This practice direction is added to the end of the list of included practice directions in Annex A to Practice Direction (Criminal Proceedings: Consolidation).

8 This practice direction is made by the Lord Chief Justice in accordance with the procedure laid down in Pt 1 of Sch 2 to the Constitutional Reform Act 2005.

Appearances: None Listed

Reported by: Jill Sutherland, Barrister