The

Judiciary of England and Wales There are various levels of judiciary in England and Wales—different types of courts have different styles of judges. They also form a strict hierarchy of importance, in line with the order of the courts in which they sit, so that judges ...

contains many levels, based on the court in which the judge sits. Titles are given to judges relating to their position and, in the case of

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

s and

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Belgi ...

s, this includes the positions they had previously held. Retired judges that sit in any court use their full name with their titles added (such as

Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

Dame ''Dame'' is an honorific title and the feminine form of address for the honour of damehood in many Christian chivalric orders, as well as the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system and those of several oth ...

, or post-nominal KC). Members or former members of the higher judiciary who are

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

do not use the

post-nominal letters Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, academic degree, accreditation, ...

KC. Due to the various honours bestowed on members of the judiciary and traditions associated with the varying levels, their personal titles and

forms of address A style of office or form of address, also called manner of address, is an official or legally recognized form of address for a person or other entity (such as a government or company), and may often be used in conjunction with a personal title. ...

often change as they progress in a judicial career.

Extant titles

Supreme Court and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

If there are two Justices of the Supreme Court with the same surname, then the junior Justice will take a territorial designation (i.e. "of

lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is divided into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

) in their title. When two or more Justices are referred at the same time in a law report, their post-nominal letters become SCJJ.

Court of Appeal

If there are two Lord Justices of the Appeal with the same surname, then the junior Lord Justice will take their first name as part of their judicial title. When two or more Lord Justices are referred at the same time in a law report, their post-nominal letters become LJJ.

High Court

If there are two Justices of the High Court with the same surname, then the junior Justice will take their first name as part of their judicial title. When two or more Justices are referred at the same time in a law report, their post-nominal letters become JJ.

Junior courts

Extinct titles

References

{{Personal names Judiciary of England and Wales Titles in the United Kingdom