The Rt Hon Lord Justice Bean appointed Chairman of the Law Commission and Professor David Ormerod QC re-appointed

The Rt Hon Lord Justice David Bean has been announced as the 14th Chairman of the Law Commission. Lord Justice Bean will take up his appointment in August this year when the term of the current Chairman, the Rt Hon Lord Justice Lloyd Jones, comes to an end.

Lord Justice Bean was appointed a Lord Justice of Appeal in October 2014. Prior to this, he served as a judge of the High Court (Queen’s Bench Division) from July 2004, and as a Presiding Judge of the South Eastern Circuit from 2007 to 2010. He was called to the Bar (Middle Temple) in 1976 and appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1997. In 2002 he was appointed Chairman of the Bar Council, having previously been a member of the Council’s Law Reform Committee. Between 2010 and 2014, he also served as a Judicial Appointments Commissioner.

The Ministry of Justice has also announced that Professor David Ormerod QC, Law Commissioner for Criminal Law, has been re-appointed for a further [years].

Chairman of the Law Commission Sir David Lloyd Jones said:

“Today’s announcements are excellent news for the Law Commission.

“I am delighted to learn of the appointment of Lord Justice Bean as the Commission’s next Chairman. He is a distinguished and respected member of the senior judiciary who will bring to the Commission his great experience acquired during a long and successful career. I am confident that he will be a great success in his new role.

“I am also delighted that Professor David Ormerod QC has been re-appointed as Law Commissioner for criminal law for a further [years]. Professor Ormerod is leading on several substantial and complex projects that have the potential to deliver significant reforms in many areas of criminal law. His reappointment will allow us to complete our work on contempt of court, offences against the person and firearms, as well as our major review of sentencing procedure.”