View source for King's Bench Division

{{Short description|Division of the English High Court of Justice}}
{{About|the division of the British High Court of Justice|other uses|King's Bench (disambiguation){{!}}King's Bench}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox court|
image=File:Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government) (2022).svg
|caption=Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom
|established=1 November 1875
|appealsto=[[Court of Appeal (England and Wales)|Court of Appeal]] (civil matters)<br>[[Supreme Court of the United Kingdom|Supreme Court]] (criminal matter)
|chiefjudgetitle=[[#President|President]]
|chiefjudgename=[[Victoria Sharp]]
|termstart=23 June 2019
|chiefjudgetitle2=[[#Vice-President|Vice-President]]
|chiefjudgename2=[[James Dingemans]]
|termstart2=5 February 2020
|chiefjudgetitle3=Senior Master and [[King's Remembrancer]]
|chiefjudgename3=Jeremy Cook
|termstart3=18 September 2023<ref>{{cite web |title=https://www.judiciary.uk/appointments-and-retirements/senior-master-of-the-kings-bench-division-cook/ |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/appointments-and-retirements/senior-master-of-the-kings-bench-division-cook/ |website=Court and Tribunals Judiciary |access-date=1 November 2023 |language=English |date=24 August 2023}}</ref>
|jurisdiction=[[England and Wales]]
|location=[[Rolls Building]], [[City of London]], London
|appealsfrom=[[Crown Court]]<br>[[Magistrates' court (England and Wales)|Magistrates' courts]]
}}
{{CourtsEnglandWales}}

The '''King's Bench Division''' (or '''Queen's Bench Division''' when the [[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|monarch]] is female) of the [[High Court of Justice]] deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts.

It hears appeals on points of law from [[Magistrates' court (England and Wales)|magistrates' courts]]{{efn|See ''[[Challenges to decisions of England and Wales magistrates' courts]]''.}} and from the [[Crown Court]].{{efn|See ''[[Courts of England and Wales]]'' for an explanation of these courts.}} These are known as appeals by way of [[case stated]], since the questions of law are considered solely on the basis of the facts found and stated by the authority under review.

Specialised courts of the King's Bench Division include the Administrative Court, Technology and Construction Court, Commercial Court, and the Admiralty Court. The specialised judges and procedures of these courts are tailored to their type of business, but they are not essentially different from any other court of the King's Bench Division.

Appeals from the High Court in civil matters are made to the [[Court of Appeal of England and Wales|Court of Appeal]] (Civil Division); in criminal matters appeal from the Divisional Court is made only to the [[Supreme Court of the United Kingdom]].

== History ==
{{Further|Court of King's Bench (England)}}
[[Image:Microcosm of London Plate 094 - Westminster Hall edited.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Westminster Hall]], meeting place of the [[Court of King's Bench (England)]] from 1215 until the King's Bench was abolished in England in 1875]]
In England and Wales, the Court of King's Bench (or Court of Queen's Bench) was the name of two courts. Each was a senior court of [[common law]], with civil and criminal jurisdiction, and a specific jurisdiction to restrain unlawful actions by public authorities.

The Court of King's Bench grew out of the King's Court, or ''[[Curia Regis]]'', which, both in character and the essence of its jurisdiction, dates back to the reign of King [[Alfred the Great|Alfred]]. At first, it was not specifically a court of law, but was the centre of royal power and national administration in England, consisting of the King, together with his advisors, courtiers, and administrators. At an unknown point, another court, independent of the King's personal presence, grew out of the ''Curia Regis'', and consisted of a number of royal judges who would hear cases themselves.

It was recorded in the chronicle of [[Abbas Benedictus|Abbot Benedict of Peterborough]] that, in 1178, [[Henry II of England|Henry II]] ordered that five judges of his household should remain in ''Curia Regis'', referring only difficult cases to himself. The situation seemed, thereafter, to be that a central royal court, called ''The Bench'', began to sit regularly at [[Westminster]], leading, at some stage, to a separation between the hearing of matters relevant to the King and those that had no royal connection, which came to be known as ''common pleas''.

In 1215, the [[Magna Carta]] provided that there should be a court{{spaced ndash}}the [[Court of Common Pleas (England)|Common Bench]] (later Court of Common Pleas), which met in a fixed place{{spaced ndash}}and, by 1234, two distinct series of plea rolls existed: ''de banco''{{spaced ndash}}those from the Common Bench{{spaced ndash}}and ''coram rege'' (Latin for "in the presence of the King"){{spaced ndash}}for those from the King's Bench. The King's Bench, being a theoretically movable court, was excluded from hearing common pleas, which included all ''[[praecipe]]'' actions for the recovery of property or debt. Actions of [[trespass]] and [[replevin]] were shared between the two benches. In practice pleas of the Crown were heard only in the King's Bench.

The King's Bench was divided into two parts: the Crown side, which had an unlimited criminal jurisdiction, both at first instance or as a court to which legal questions arising out of indictments in other courts could be referred; and the plea side, which dealt with actions of trespass, appeals of felony, and writs of error. The [[Lord Chief Justice]] of the King's Bench was styled the Lord Chief Justice of England, being the highest permanent judge of [[the Crown]].

The King's Bench became a fixed court sitting in [[Westminster Hall]].  Its justices travelled on circuit, a requirement of Magna Carta. By a legal fiction, criminal cases to be heard in the shires were set down for trial in Westminster Hall "unless before" (''[[nisi prius]]'') the justice came to the county, which was where the trial actually took place.

During the [[Commonwealth of England]], from 1649 to 1660, the court was known as the ''Upper Bench''.<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=25592 'House of Commons Journal Volume 6: 10 February 1649'] Journal of the House of Commons: volume 6: 1648–1651 (1802), pp. 136–38. Accessed 26 April 2007.</ref>

The English Court of King's Bench was abolished in 1875 by the [[Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873]]. The Court's jurisdiction passed in each case to a new High Court of Justice and specifically to the King's Bench Division of that court.

The court gave its name to London's [[King's Bench Prison]], in which many defendants were subsequently incarcerated, and to King's Bench Walk in the [[Inner Temple]].

<gallery>
File:Illuminated membrane, with portrait of Elizabeth, 1584.jpg|An illuminated initial membrane, with portrait of [[Elizabeth I]], Court of King's Bench: Coram Rege Roll (Easter Term, 1584)
</gallery>

== Subdivisions ==
=== Administrative Court ===
The Administrative Court deals mainly with [[administrative law]] matters and exercises the High Court's supervisory jurisdiction over inferior courts and tribunals and other public bodies.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Administrative Court |url=https://www.gov.uk/courts-tribunals/administrative-court |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=GOV.UK |language=en}}</ref> It is generally the appropriate legal forum where the validity, but, at least in principle, not the merits of official decisions may be challenged. Generally, unless specific appeal processes are provided, the validity of any decision of a [[minister of the crown]], inferior court, tribunal, local authority or other official body may be challenged by a judge with sufficient interest through the exercise of [[Judicial review in English law|judicial review]]. A single judge first decides whether the matter is fit to bring to the Court, to filter out frivolous or unarguable cases, and if so, the matter is allowed to go forward to a full judicial review hearing with one or more judges.

The Administrative Court may sit with a single judge or as a [[Divisional court (England and Wales)|divisional court]] (i.e. with two or more judges). A divisional court of the Administrative Court usually consists of a [[Lord Justice of Appeal]] sitting with a [[High Court judge (England and Wales)|judge of the High Court]]. Although the Administrative Court is within the King's Bench Division (reflecting the historical role of the [[Court of King's Bench (England)|Court of King's Bench]] in exercising judicial review), judges from the [[Chancery Division]] and the [[Family Division]] of the High Court are also assigned to sit.

=== Commercial Court ===
The Commercial Court is a major [[Civil law (common law)|civil court]] in [[England and Wales]] that specialises on adjudicating domestic and international business disputes, with a particular emphasis on [[international trade]], [[banking]], [[insurance]], and [[Commodity market|commodities]].<ref>[https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/you-and-the-judiciary/going-to-court/high-court/queens-bench-division/courts-of-the-queens-bench-division/commercial-court/about-us/] History of the Commercial Court. Judiciary.gov.uk</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Admiralty and Commercial Court - Find a Court or Tribunal - GOV.UK |url=https://www.find-court-tribunal.service.gov.uk/courts/admiralty-and-commercial-court |access-date=2022-11-30 |website=www.find-court-tribunal.service.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref>

==== History ====
The Commercial Court was set up in 1895 following demands from the [[City of London]] and the business community for a tribunal or court staffed by judges with knowledge and experience of commercial disputes which could determine such disputes expeditiously and economically, thereby avoiding tediously long and expensive trials with verdicts given by judges or juries unfamiliar with business practices.

The commercial list was originally heard by two judges of the King's Bench Division with the appropriate knowledge and experience. As the work of the Court has expanded, eight judges now sit in the Court.<ref name="About Us">{{Cite web |title=About Us |url=https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/you-and-the-judiciary/going-to-court/high-court/queens-bench-division/courts-of-the-queens-bench-division/commercial-court/about-us/ |access-date=2017-01-31 |website=www.judiciary.gov.uk |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==== Function ====
The current work of the Commercial Court entails all aspects of commercial disputes, in the fields of banking and finance, disputes over contracts and business documents, [[import]], [[export]] and [[transport]], agency and management agreements, [[shipping]], insurance and reinsurance, and commodities. The court is also the principal supervisory court for [[London]] [[arbitration]], dealing with the granting of freezing and other relief in aid of arbitration, challenges to arbitration awards, and enforcement of awards. The Mercantile Court also can hear most of these cases.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Commercial Court |url=https://www.gov.uk/courts-tribunals/commercial-court}}</ref>

It is also a major centre for international disputes. Over 70% of the court's workload involves foreign parties where the only connection with the jurisdiction is the choice of [[English and Welsh law]] in a contract.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date= |title=City UK Legal Services Report 2016 |url=https://www.thecityuk.com/assets/2016/Reports-PDF/UK-financial-and-related-professional-services-meeting-the-challenges-and-delivering-opportunities.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170929102744/https://www.thecityuk.com/assets/2016/Reports-PDF/UK-financial-and-related-professional-services-meeting-the-challenges-and-delivering-opportunities.pdf |archive-date=2017-09-29 |access-date= |website= |publisher=}}</ref>

==== Judges ====
Eight specialist judges sit in the Court at any one time. They are drawn from a list of those authorised due to their specialist knowledge and expertise.<ref name="About Us"/> The current Judge in Charge of the Commercial Court is Dame [[Sara Cockerill]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Judges & clerks |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/you-and-the-judiciary/going-to-court/high-court/queens-bench-division/courts-of-the-queens-bench-division/commercial-court/judges-clerks/}}</ref>

==== Financial List ====
From October 2015, the Commercial Court and the [[High Court of Justice#Chancery Division|Chancery Division]] have maintained the Financial List for cases which would benefit from being heard by judges with suitable expertise and experience in the financial markets or which raise issues of general importance to the financial markets. The procedure was introduced to enable fast, efficient and high quality dispute resolution of claims related to the financial markets.<ref>[https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/465590/financial-list-guide.pdf Authorised ''Guide to the Financial List'', 1 October 2015]</ref>

=== Technology and Construction Court ===
The [[Civil Procedure Rules]], which regulate [[civil procedure]] in the High Court, allocate non-exhaustive categories of work to the Technology and Construction Court (TCC), principally, as the name suggests, disputes in the areas of construction and technology.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Davis |first=Michael E. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/69331809 |title=The Technology and Construction Court : practice and procedure |date=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |others=Robert Akenhead |isbn=978-0-19-928004-9 |location=Oxford |oclc=69331809}}</ref>

However, since its formation in its current guise in October 1998, the court's jurisdiction has expanded such that many civil claims which are factually or technically complex are now heard in the TCC, beyond its traditional case load. For example, large-scale group [[personal injury]] claims are heard by the court, as are disputes arising out of the [[European Union|EU's]] [[Government procurement in the European Union|public procurement regime]].

The court's reputation has steadily grown over the years, such that it is now regarded as a highly capable and knowledgeable court. Its case load has dramatically increased since 1998, both in the form of traditional [[Lawsuit|litigation]] and through assisted methods of [[alternative dispute resolution]]. In 2011, the court moved its central location from its aged buildings in [[Fetter Lane]] to the newly constructed £200m [[Rolls Building]].<ref name="rollsbuilding">{{cite news |date=December 2010 |title=The Changing Face of Dispute Resolution |publisher=einsidetrack |url=http://www.einsidetrack.com/details/building-construction-news-law/4/legal_the_changing_face_of_dispute_resolution |accessdate=30 January 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=A royal opening for the Rolls Building |url=http://www.justice.gov.uk/news/press-releases/moj/newsrelease071211a.htm}}</ref>

==== History ====
The court was known until 9 October 1998 as the Official Referees' Court, a name which reflected its old status as a [[tribunal]] with no jurisdiction per se, but which could report to judges on its findings.<ref name="newcourt">{{cite news |date=13 October 1998 |title=Official Referee's Court is now TCC |newspaper=[[The Times]] |url=http://www.casetrack.com/WHATSNEW.NSF/b0a7cca392e57732802565ef0057ea25/ce948ee04441ee6c802566b2003752b1?OpenDocument |accessdate=30 January 2011}}</ref> The new court, which was founded under the leadership of [[John Dyson, Lord Dyson|Mr Justice Dyson]] (later the [[Master of the Rolls]]), aimed to rid the perception this created that the court was not equal to others in the King's Bench Division. When opening the new court, Dyson said the new changes were "of real significance", and included technological advancements to aid the court's running, such as a centralised listing system.<ref name="newcourt" />

With the introduction of the new [[Civil Procedure Rules]] on 26 April 1999 following [[Harry Woolf, Baron Woolf|Lord Woolf's]] report, the TCC's caseload dropped slightly as a result of the new Rules' focus on [[alternative dispute resolution]]. This meant fewer claims were issued: previously, claims had been issued as a matter of course as part of the negotiation process.<ref name="iconreview">{{cite news |date=5 April 2006 |title=Acceptance of adjudication helps big cut in construction's litigation workload |publisher=International Construction Review |url=http://www.iconreview.org/news/13447 |accessdate=30 January 2011}}</ref>

The proliferation of [[adjudication]] following its introduction in the [[Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996|Construction Act 1996]] also led to fewer disputes going before the court, but did give the court a new role in enforcing adjudication decisions. The Construction Act gives parties to a "construction contract" a right to refer matters to adjudicators, with the aim of aiding cash flow in the construction sector by allowing disputes to be settled without the need for lengthy and costly court proceedings.<ref>{{cite news |date=14 August 2004 |title=Arbitration is learning from adjudication |publisher=Atkinson Law |url=http://www.atkinson-law.com/library/article.php?id=69 |accessdate=30 January 2011}}</ref> Changes to the Construction Act 1996 brought in by the [[Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009]] are likely to see even more disputes referred to adjudication before reaching the TCC.<ref>{{cite news |date=9 July 2010 |title=Adjudication: caught in the Act? |publisher=The In-House Lawyer |url=http://www.inhouselawyer.co.uk/index.php/litigation-a-dispute-resolution/8091-adjudication-caught-in-the-act |accessdate=30 January 2011}}</ref>

The [[Arbitration Act 1996]] had a similar effect as adjudication. Such was the effect on the number of cases being brought before the TCC, extra capacity meant that TCC judges could act as judge-arbitrators, utilising their experience and knowledge while contributing to the CPR's goals in reducing litigation costs.<ref name="iconreview" />

==== Jurisdiction ====
The TCC deals primarily with litigation of disputes arising in the field of technology and construction. It includes building, engineering and technology disputes, [[professional negligence]] claims and IT disputes as well as enforcement of adjudication decisions and challenges to arbitrators’ decisions. The TCC also regularly deals with allegations of lawyers’ negligence arising in connection with planning, property, construction and other technical disputes.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=October 2010 |title=The Technology and Construction Court Guide |url=http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/docs/TCC%20Guide.pdf |volume=Second Edition, Second Revision}}</ref>

The work of the TCC often involves both complex legal argument and heavyweight technical issues, and as a result TCC judges try some of the most arduous and complex disputes that come before the civil courts. The sums at issue can be large, often involving millions of pounds, although there is in theory at least no minimum sum to be claimed (as, under the CPR, the court has wide powers to assert jurisdiction over claims it feels are appropriate). Cases can last several days and involve mountains of paperwork and expert evidence.<ref>{{Cite court|litigants=Linklaters Business Services v. Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd and ors|court=Technology and Construction Court|date=3 November 2010|url=http://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/markup.cgi?doc=/ew/cases/EWHC/TCC/2010/2931.html&query=title+(+linklaters+)+and+title+(+v+)+and+title+(+mcalpine+)&method=boolean}}</ref>

==== Court locations ====
TCC cases are managed and heard by specialist judges in London and at centres throughout [[England and Wales]]. The cases are allocated either to High Court judges, senior circuit judges, [[Circuit judge (UK)|circuit judges]] or recorders both in London and at regional centres outside London. Since its inception, the court has been led by several judges-in-charge, a role filled by a number of pre-eminent judges in the field of construction law: [[Lord Dyson]], Sir [[Thayne Forbes|John Thayne Forbes]], [[Sir Rupert Jackson]], Sir [[Vivian Ramsey]], [[Robert Akenhead|Mr Justice Akenhead]] (2010 to 2013), Sir [[Antony Edwards-Stuart]] (2013 to 2016), Sir [[Peter Coulson]] (2016 to 2018), [[Peter Fraser (judge)|Sir Peter Fraser]] (2018 to 2020) and [[Finola O'Farrell|Dame Finola O'Farrell]] (2020 to present).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/new-judge-in-charge-of-the-technology-and-construction-court |title=New Judge in Charge of the Technology and Construction Court |website=judiciary.uk |date= 2 March 2020}}</ref> As at 2019, the court has seven full-time High Court judges.<ref>https://tecbar.org/the-tcc/ {{Dead link|date=February 2022}}</ref>

In April 2011, the court moved its central location from its aged building in [[Fetter Lane]] to a purpose-built building on Fetter Lane, the [[Rolls Building]], not far from the [[Royal Courts of Justice]] in [[London]]. The court shares the building with other divisional courts of the King's Bench and Chancery Divisions. As well as its London location, where most cases (including those with an international element) are heard after being started or transferred there, claims can be issued and heard at any of the following regional court centres:

* Birmingham (full-time TCC judge available)
* Bristol
* Cardiff
* Chester
* Exeter
* Leeds
* Liverpool (full-time TCC judge available)
* Manchester (full-time TCC judge available)
* Newcastle
* Nottingham

TCC authorised judges are also available at Leicester, Sheffield and Southampton, although claims cannot be issued there.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Technology and Construction Court |url=http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/infoabout/tcc/index.htm |accessdate=30 January 2011}}</ref>

=== Admiralty Court ===
England's admiralty courts date to at least the 1360s, during the reign of [[Edward III]]. At that time there were three such courts, appointed by admirals responsible for waters to the north, south and west of England. In 1483 these local courts were amalgamated into a single High Court of Admiralty, administered by the [[Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom|Lord High Admiral]] of England.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Senior |first=W. |year=1924 |title=The Mace of the Admiralty Court |journal=The Mariner's Mirror |volume=10 |issue=1 |page=52 |doi=10.1080/00253359.1924.10655256}}</ref> The Lord High Admiral directly appointed judges to the court, and could remove them at will. This was amended from 1673, with appointments falling within the purview of the Crown,<ref name="Sainty">Sainty 1975, p95</ref>{{efn|An exception was Judge Humphrey Henchman, appointed in June 1714 by direction of the Board of Admiralty, rather than the monarch. Henchman served for six months and was removed from office in December 1714.<ref>Sainty 1975, pp. 95, 131</ref>}} and from 1689 judges also received an annual stipend and a degree of tenure, holding their positions subject to effective delivery of their duties rather than at the Lord High Admiral's pleasure.<ref name="Sainty" />

From its inception in 1483 until 1657 the court sat in a disused church in [[Southwark]], and from then until 1665 in Montjoy House, private premises leased from the Dean of [[St Paul's Cathedral]]. In order to escape the [[Great Plague of London]] in 1665, the court was briefly relocated to [[Winchester]] and then to [[Jesus College, Oxford|Jesus College]] at [[Oxford University]]. The plague threat having subsided by 1666, the court returned to London and until 1671 was located at [[Cecil House|Exeter House]] on [[Strand, London|The Strand]] before returning to Montjoy House near St Paul's.<ref>Wiswall 1970, p.77</ref>

During the period after the [[French and Indian War]], admiralty courts became an issue that was a part of the rising tension between the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|British Parliament]] and their [[Thirteen Colonies|American Colonies]]. Starting with the [[British Royal Proclamation of 1763|Proclamation of 1763]], these courts were given jurisdiction over a number of laws affecting the colonies. The jurisdiction was expanded in later acts of the Parliament, such as the [[Stamp Act 1765|Stamp Act of 1765]].

The colonists' objections were based on several factors. The courts could try a case anywhere in the British Empire. Cases involving New York or Boston merchants were frequently heard in Nova Scotia and sometimes even in England. The fact that judges were paid based in part on the fines that they levied and naval officers were paid for bringing "successful" cases led to abuses. There was no trial by jury, and evidence standards were lower than in criminal courts, the latter requiring proof "beyond reasonable doubt". The government's objective was to improve the effectiveness of revenue and excise tax laws. In many past instances, smugglers would avoid taxes. Even when they were caught and brought to trial, local judges frequently acquitted the popular local merchants whom they perceived as being unfairly accused by an unpopular tax collector.

In 1875, the High Court of Admiralty governing England and Wales was absorbed into the new [[Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division|Probate, Divorce and Admiralty (or PDA) Division]] of the High Court. When the PDA Division was in turn abolished and replaced by the Family Division, the "probate" and "admiralty" jurisdictions were transferred to, respectively, the [[Chancery Division]] and to the new "Admiralty Court", a subset of the King's Bench Division of the High Court. Strictly speaking, there was no longer an "Admiralty Court" as such, but the admiralty jurisdiction allocated by the [[Senior Courts Act 1981]] was (and is) exercised by the Admiralty Judge and other Commercial Court judges authorized to sit in admiralty cases. When these judges sat, it became convenient to call the sitting the "Admiralty Court".

In [[England and Wales]] today, admiralty jurisdiction is exercised by the High Court of Justice in England (EWHC). [[Admiralty law]] applied in this court is based upon the [[Civil law (legal system)|civil law]]-based [[Law of the Sea]],{{citation needed|date=February 2019}} with [[statutory law]] and [[common law]] additions. The Admiralty Court is no longer in the [[Royal Courts of Justice]] in the [[Strand, London|Strand]], having moved to the [[Rolls Building]].

== Leadership ==
=== President ===
Until 2005, the head of the Division was the [[Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales|Lord Chief Justice]]. The post of president of the King's Bench Division was created by the [[Constitutional Reform Act 2005]], leaving the Lord Chief Justice as president of the [[Courts of England and Wales]], head of the Judiciary of England and Wales and head of [[Criminal Justice]].<ref name="CRA">{{cite web |date=24 March 2005 |title=Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4) |url=http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2005/50004--c.htm#7 |access-date=13 March 2009 |publisher=Opsi.gov.uk}}</ref> Sir [[Igor Judge]] was the first person to hold the office, appointed in October 2005.<ref name="CRA" /><ref>{{cite web |date=15 August 2008 |title=NDS – News Distribution Service |url=http://www.gnn.gov.uk/environment/detail.asp?ReleaseID=171681&NewsAreaID=2&NavigatedFromDepartment=True |access-date=13 March 2009 |publisher=Gnn.gov.uk}}{{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

==== List of presidents ====

* 3 October 2005: Sir [[Igor Judge, Baron Judge|Igor Judge]]<ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 57779
| date = 5 October 2005
| page = 12927
}}</ref>
* 1 October 2008: Sir [[Anthony May (judge)|Anthony May]]<ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 58843
| date = 6 October 2008
| page = 15222
}}</ref>
* 3 October 2011: Sir [[John Thomas (judge)|John Thomas]]<ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 59931
| date = 6 October 2011
| page = 19091
}}</ref>
* 1 October 2013: Sir [[Brian Leveson]]<ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 60644
| date = 1 October 2013
| page = 19289
}}</ref>
* 23 June 2019: Dame [[Victoria Sharp]]<ref name="judiciary.uk">{{Cite web |title=Appointment of the President of the Queen’s Bench Division |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/announcements/appointment-of-the-president-of-the-queens-bench-division-2/ |access-date=2019-07-05 |website=www.judiciary.uk |language=en-GB}}</ref>

=== Vice-President ===
The office of Vice-President of the King's Bench Division predates the separation of the division's presidency from the office of Lord Chief Justice. In 1988, the Lord Chief Justice, [[Geoffrey Lane, Baron Lane|Lord Lane]], made arrangements for Sir [[Tasker Watkins]], a [[Lord Justice of Appeal]], to be Deputy Chief Justice, deputising across the range of Lane's responsibilities. The arrangement continued under Lane's successor. When Watkins retired in 1993, [[Peter Taylor, Baron Taylor of Gosforth|Lord Taylor of Gosforth]] appointed Sir [[Paul Kennedy (English judge)|Paul Kennedy]] of the [[Court of Appeal of England and Wales|Court of Appeal]] to oversee the Queen's Bench Division.<ref name="publications.parliament.uk">[https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199899/ldhansrd/vo990128/text/90128-25.htm#90128-25_spnew2 House of Lords Debates 28 January 1999 c 1244–45.]</ref><ref name="s 69">Access to Justice Act 1999, [http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1999/22/section/69 s 69.]</ref>

[[Thomas Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill|Lord Bingham of Cornhill]], who took over as Lord Chief Justice in 1996, made arrangements with [[James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern|Lord Mackay of Clashfern]] ([[Lord Chancellor]] under [[John Major]]) whereby Lord Justice Kennedy would become Vice-President of the Queen's Bench Division, with the understanding that it would be made a statutory office at an early date. Lord Bingham made the appointment in 1997. Lord Mackay's Labour successor, [[Derry Irvine, Baron Irvine of Lairg|Lord Irvine of Lairg]], honoured the commitment in the Access to Justice Act 1999.<ref name="publications.parliament.uk"/><ref name="s 69"/>

==== List of vice-presidents ====

* 1997: Sir [[Paul Kennedy (English judge)|Paul Kennedy]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Swaine |first=Jon |date=2 December 2009 |title=MPs expenses: Profile of Sir Paul Kennedy, new judge of allowance claims |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/6711621/MPs-expenses-Profile-of-Sir-Paul-Kennedy-new-judge-of-allowance-claims.html |accessdate=14 October 2012 |work=The Telegraph}}</ref>
* February 2002: Sir [[Anthony May (judge)|Anthony May]]<ref>{{cite press release |title=Appointments to Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court and Lord Justice of Appeal |publisher=Number10.gov.uk |archiveurl=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20090120164222/http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page16744 |archivedate=20 January 2009 |date=4 September 2008 |url=http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page16744}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=9 August 2001 |title=Lord Justice May to replace Kennedy |url=http://www.legalweek.com/legal-week/news/1155254/lord-justice-replace-kennedy |work=Legal Week (subscription required) |quote=May is to replace Lord Justice Kennedy in the role. The appointment will come into effect in February 2002...}}</ref>
* October 2008: Sir [[John Thomas (judge)|John Thomas]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Rozenberg |first=Joshua |date=12 October 2012 |title=A Who's Hughes of the number twos |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/lawreports/joshuarozenberg/3183169/A-Whos-Hughes-of-the-number-twos.html |work=The Telegraph}}</ref>
* 3 October 2011: Dame [[Heather Hallett]]<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/media/media-releases/2011/appointment-vice-president-qbd-deputy-spj |title=Appointment of Vice-President of the Queen's Bench Division and Deputy Senior Presiding Judge |date=27 July 2011 |publisher=Judiciary of England and Wales |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218094840/http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/media/media-releases/2011/appointment-vice-president-qbd-deputy-spj |archivedate=18 December 2012}}</ref>
* 4 March 2014: Sir [[Nigel Davis]]<ref>{{cite press release |title=New Vice President of the Queen's Bench Division Appointed |url=http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/announcements/new-vice-president-of-the-queens-bench-division-appointed/ |date=14 March 2014 |publisher=Courts and Tribunals Judiciary of England and Wales |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140522180120/http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/announcements/new-vice-president-of-the-queens-bench-division-appointed/ |archivedate=22 May 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref>
* 1 January 2016 Dame [[Victoria Sharp]]<ref name="judiciary.uk"/>
* 5 February 2020 Sir [[James Dingemans]]<ref>[https://www.judiciary.uk/announcements/vice-president-of-the-queens-bench-division/ Vice-President of the Queen’s Bench Division]</ref>

== See also ==

* [[Lord Chief Justice]]
* [[Master of the Rolls]]
* [[President of the Family Division]]
* [[Chancellor of the High Court]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

[[Category:High Court of Justice]]
[[Category:Administrative courts]]
[[Category:English civil law]]
[[Category:United Kingdom administrative law]]
[[Category:Judiciary of England and Wales]]
[[Category:Economy of England]]
[[Category:Economy of Wales]]