Council of His Majesty's Circuit Judges (COCJ)

Updated October 2026

The Council of HM Circuit Judges is the representative body of Circuit Judges in England and Wales. The committee of the Council consists of elected and co-opted members. Our committee has representatives from all parts of England and Wales and represents all types of work conducted by the Circuit Bench.

The President of the Council in 2026 is His Honour Judge Simon Monty KC, and in 2027 His Honour Judge Timothy Smith.

Our membership comprises of serving and retired Circuit Judges. Members are encouraged to contact their circuit representative or any of the officers on any issues of concern.

The committee regularly meets with senior judiciary and senior administrators to represent the interests of our members. The Secretary and President regularly send out communication to members alerting them of any developments that impact on the interests of the Circuit bench.

We also arrange events when our members, including retired members, can meet socially. We hold dinners in the spring and in the summer (in 2027, Winchester and Manchester), with our Annual General Meeting and dinner in London in the autumn. Committee members also often arrange local functions. Our events are hugely popular.

We frequently contribute to consultations that take place for instance by the Sentencing Council and the Law Commission. In recent times, we have actively represented the interests of our members on issues of pension and salary reviews.

Whilst we no longer sell items of judicial attire, we carry a small stock of Full Bottomed (dress) Wigs that members can borrow for free, on request, for ceremonial occasions. Please contact our administrative assistant, Yvonne Jacobs-Jones, by email and provide as much notice as you can if you wish to borrow one of these wigs.

If you are a Circuit Judge and wish to become a member of the Council of Circuit Judges, or if you are about to take up an appointment and have not received information about joining, please contact our administrator, Yvonne Jacobs-Jones.

We are proud to say that we have a vibrant number of retired colleagues who continue to support us and attend functions. They pay a reduced subscription. The contact for retired Circuit Judges who are members of CoCJ is Her Honour Lesley Newton.

Members who have access to the Judicial Intranet will find further information about CoCJ and the work it does and contact details of the representatives through the Judicial Intranet page and the eJudiciary (external link) sites.