The Judicial Studies Board for Northern Ireland (JSB) was established in 1994.
In order to protect judicial independence and in particular to ensure that sectional interests are not brought to bear on the judiciary through the training events, the Board is “judge driven”.
The Board consists of at least one representative from each judicial tier and at least one non-judicial member from the field of legal education/training.
The Board is chaired by a High Court Judge.
The Board considers that its constitution brings both independence and an appropriate balance of experience in judging matters of strategy, performance, resources, internal control and corporate governance.
Judicial Studies Board Constitution
Role of the Judicial Studies Board
The role of the JSB is to ensure as far as possible that judicial office holders are equipped, with the skills and knowledge which they require to discharge their duties effectively. It seeks to provide information and training in a way which preserves judicial independence and promotes confidence in the justice system.
The Board is responsible for overseeing training for all judicial tiers. The work carried out by the JSB can be broadly divided into the following categories:
- to approve a programme of induction training for newly appointed judges
- to approve an annual programme of judicial training to include a mixture of workshops and seminars
- to approve funding for attendance at non-JSB events
- to evaluate all training provided and make alterations and improvements as required
- to maintain and develop effective working relationships with the training bodies of other jurisdictions
- to approve the provision and maintenance of Bench Books and other guidance materials for the judiciary.
Members of the judiciary are also invited to attend courses organised and run by the Judicial College and the Judicial Institute, Scotland.
The Board is a founder member of the European Judicial Training Network (EJTN) and members of the judiciary attend conferences in a number of other jurisdictions to discuss matters of mutual interest.
To find out more information about the organisations listed above please visit the section called ‘Useful Links’.