Citation and commencement

1. These Rules may be cited as the Election Judges Rota Rules 2015 and come into force on 20th March 2015.

Placing of judges on rota for trial of election petitions

2. —(1) Every year on 1st January, or as soon thereafter as practicable, at least four judges from among the judges of the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court who meet the requirements of section 142 of the Senior Courts Act 1981(referred to in these Rules as “election judges”) shall be placed on the rota for the trial of parliamentary election petitions in England and Wales under Part III of the Representation of the People Act 1983( 2 ).

(2) An election judge—

(a) shall remain on the rota until 31st December of the year in which that judge was placed on the rota, subject to paragraph (4); and

(b) is eligible to be placed on the rota again in the succeeding or any subsequent year (unless that judge otherwise ceases to be eligible for any reason).

(3) The judges to be placed on the rota shall be nominated by the President of the Queen’s Bench Division.

(4) If any election judge ceases to be eligible to be placed on the rota during the year after being placed on the rota, the President of the Queen’s Bench Division shall nominate a judge of the Queen’s Bench Division to be placed on the rota for the remainder of that year in place of the ineligible judge.

(5) The President of the Queen’s Bench Division may, after consulting the Lord Chief Justice, nominate such number of judges greater than four as the President of the Queen’s Bench Division considers appropriate to facilitate the more convenient administration and trial of election petitions, and in that event the greater number of judges shall be placed on the rota.

(6) Any judge placed on the rota before these Rules come into force shall remain on the rota until 31st December 2015.