Appointment of new Presiding Judge for the South Eastern Circuit

The Honourable Mr Justice (John) Saunders has been appointed as Presiding Judge on the South Eastern Circuit with effect from 1 January 2009.

He will take over from Mr Justice Fulford, who is unable to take up this post due to his commitments at the International Criminal Court.

Mr Justice Saunders was called to the Bar (Gray’s Inn) in 1972, and was appointed as a Queen’s Counsel in 1991. He was appointed as a Recorder in 1990, and became a Senior Circuit Judge and the Recorder of Birmingham in 2004. In 2007 he was appointed as a High Court Judge in the Queen’s Bench Division.

Note to Editors

Presiding Judges are responsible for the overall deployment of the judiciary and allocation of cases on their Circuit. They will assign cases to qualified judges on a rota basis, with the aid of listing officers who ensure that the various judges are available to hear cases. They also have responsibility for general supervision of judges on their circuits – for example mentoring, career development and discipline.

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