By Gabriel Princewill-
British courts remain a long way from reflecting the diversity of the society they serve, despite gradual improvements in the number of women and judges from some minority ethnic backgrounds, according to the latest official figures.
New Ministry of Justice statistics reveal that while progress has been made over the past decade, representation of Black judges has effectively stalled, solicitor appointments continue to lag behind barristers, and concerns persist that talented lawyers from less privileged backgrounds still face significant barriers to reaching the bench. The annual Judicial Diversity Statistics, published by the Ministry of Justice, show that women now account for 40 per cent of court judges and more than half of tribunal judges, continuing a slow but steady upward trend. However, the figures also expose persistent inequalities within the judicial system, particularly around ethnicity and professional background, prompting renewed calls for reforms to ensure England and Wales’ judiciary better reflects the communities whose cases it hears every day.
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Perhaps the most striking finding is the lack of progress in increasing Black representation among judges. Over the past decade, the proportion of Black judges has risen only marginally—from 1.4 per cent in 2016 to just 1.6 per cent this year—a change so small that campaigners say it effectively amounts to stagnation. While the number of judges from Asian and mixed ethnic backgrounds has increased gradually during the same period, the pace of change for Black representation remains markedly slower.
The figures stand in contrast to the changing demographics of England and Wales. According to the 2021 Census, around 18 per cent of the population of England and Wales identifies with a Black, Asian, mixed or other minority ethnic background, including around 4 per cent who identify as Black.
Although the composition of the legal profession differs from that of the wider population, equality groups have long argued that the judiciary should move closer to reflecting the diversity of modern Britain, both to enhance public confidence and to broaden the range of professional experiences informing judicial decision-making.
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Gender diversity has shown more encouraging progress. Women now make up 40 per cent of court judges, compared with just 28 per cent in 2016, while they account for 54 per cent of tribunal judges, up from 44 per cent a decade ago. Those increases reflect years of targeted recruitment initiatives and a growing number of women entering the legal profession. However, despite these gains, women remain underrepresented in many of the most senior judicial roles. Historically, the higher the level of the court, the lower the proportion of female judges, although that pattern has slowly begun to change as more experienced women progress through the judicial ranks.
The latest statistics also reveal another trend that has concerned the legal profession for several years—the continuing decline in the proportion of judges drawn from the solicitor profession. Non-barristers now account for just 30 per cent of all court judges, down from 31 per cent last year and four percentage points lower than in 2016. Although non-barristers remain better represented within the tribunal system, where they comprise 60 per cent of judges, even that figure has fallen by five percentage points over the past decade.
The imbalance is particularly significant because solicitors now make up the majority of practising lawyers in England and Wales. According to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, there are well over 160,000 practising solicitors compared with around 18,000 practising barristers. Yet despite forming the larger branch of the legal profession, solicitors continue to secure judicial appointments at lower rates. The latest appointment figures reinforce those concerns. Solicitors submitted more applications for judicial office than barristers but received proportionately fewer recommendations for appointment. The Law Society warned that the disparity risks undermining confidence in the fairness of the appointments process. Vice president Brett Dixon said solicitors continued to achieve judicial appointments at “disproportionately low rates” compared with barristers.
“Our concern remains that until this percentage significantly increases, we will struggle to persuade our members that entry to the judiciary is a level playing field or that their skills are understood and valued,” he said. Many solicitors argue that the traditional route to judicial office has historically favoured barristers because of their advocacy experience in higher courts, despite solicitors increasingly conducting complex litigation, appearing in senior courts and developing specialist expertise across numerous areas of law. Concerns over diversity extend beyond gender, ethnicity and professional background to issues of social mobility.
The Bar Council highlighted evidence suggesting that candidates educated at state schools, those who were the first in their family to attend university and lawyers from lower socio-economic backgrounds continue to experience lower recommendation rates for judicial appointments. Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC said those disparities remained a cause for concern, indicating that social class continues to influence opportunities to reach the bench. Critics have argued that Britain’s judiciary has drawn disproportionately from a relatively narrow section of society—traditionally white, male, privately educated barristers practising at the independent Bar.
Although that profile has gradually diversified over recent decades, campaigners say progress has been too slow given the increasing diversity of both the legal profession and the wider population. Successive governments have argued that a more representative judiciary is not simply a matter of equality but also one of public confidence .Research commissioned by judicial bodies has consistently suggested that people are more likely to trust institutions that visibly reflect the communities they serve. While judges are required to decide cases impartially and independently regardless of their personal characteristics, greater diversity is seen as strengthening the legitimacy of the justice system by demonstrating that judicial office is genuinely open to talent from every background.
Supporters of greater diversity also argue that judges inevitably bring different life experiences to complex legal issues involving family life, employment, discrimination, immigration, criminal justice and public law. Although judicial decisions must be based on evidence and legal principles rather than personal opinion, varied professional and personal experiences are widely regarded as enhancing discussion, reducing the risk of unconscious bias and improving understanding of the realities faced by different sections of society. The judiciary itself has repeatedly emphasised that diversity should never come at the expense of merit. Instead, the aim is to ensure that barriers preventing suitably qualified candidates from applying or succeeding are identified and removed so that appointments genuinely reflect the widest possible pool of talent.
Responding to the latest figures, Lord Chancellor David Lammy (pictured)acknowledged the progress that has been made while recognising that substantial work remains.
“These statistics show real progress being made,” he said. “But we must continue to go further to ensure talent from all backgrounds can fulfil their full potential.”
He pointed to the creation of the new Judicial and Legal Diversity Board, established to bring together leaders from across the legal profession to identify barriers to judicial careers and improve opportunities for underrepresented groups. Among its priorities will be strengthening mentoring, networking and career support for Black and other minority ethnic legal professionals, who continue to be underrepresented at senior levels of the judiciary despite increasing diversity within the wider legal profession.
Mentoring has become an increasingly important part of judicial diversity strategies, with research suggesting that many potential applicants—particularly solicitors and lawyers from minority or less privileged backgrounds—often lack access to informal networks that have historically helped candidates understand the appointments process and prepare competitive applications. The latest figures suggest that while Britain’s judiciary is becoming more diverse, progress remains uneven. Women have made significant gains over the past decade, and representation from some ethnic minority groups continues to rise slowly. Yet the near-stagnation in Black judicial representation, the declining share of solicitor judges and continuing socio-economic disparities demonstrate that many longstanding obstacles remain.
For a justice system founded on principles of fairness, equality before the law and public confidence, the challenge facing policymakers is no longer simply increasing diversity in headline numbers. It is ensuring that every talented lawyer—regardless of race, gender, educational background or professional route—has an equal opportunity to reach the bench and help shape the administration of justice in modern Britain.
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