Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 10:45 am on 14 February 2002.
I beg to move amendment No. 77, in page 121, line 41, at end insert-
'In Schedule 2, the entry relating to the Lord Chief Justice's Office.'.
The amendment provides that the Lord Chief Justice's office will no longer be a department of the Supreme Court within the meaning of the Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978. The amendment is consistent with the review recommendation, reflected in clause 13, that the Lord Chief Justice should have a wider role, covering the judiciary and the magistracy, instead of just the Supreme Court. It is a positive signal of the Government's intent that the office of Lord Chief Justice should embrace the whole judicial service.