A regional daily reporter launched a courtroom challenge after a judge refused to give him her first name.
Tim Ridgway, the local government reporter from The Argus in Brighton, made a complaint after a judge sitting at Brighton County Court would not provide him with her first name to use in his story about a case.
After a court hearing, Tim made a number of attempts to find out Judge Barbara Wright’s first name but was refused, with the court telling him that the judge did not want to provide the details.
Tim then made a complaint and won support from the Royal Courts of Justice, who told him a reminder would be sent out saying that the first names of judges should be given out by court staff.
Said Tim: “From day one at journalism school, you are always told at court hearings to get every single piece of information from everyone involved.
“I’m pleased the Royal Courts of Justice has backed me up on this. It’s important for open justice for judges to be held responsible for their decisions and remain accountable to the public, who are ultimately the people they are there to serve.”
The court case involved a leaseholder applying for an injunction against Brighton and Hove City Council after he was given a £20,000 bill for repairs to his flat but his bid was refused by Judge Wright.
Following the court hearing, Tim asked the ushers for the judge’s first name but was told they did not know it and then approached court officials, who said they were not allowed to give out personal details.
He then phoned the court later that day and was told the judge did not want to provide her first name.
However after emailing the court to complain, he received a reply from a Royal Courts of Justice press officer, which confirmed that court staff should give out the names of judges and said the HMCTS press office would now remind staff of this.
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She sounds pompous!
“Just call me Justice Wright”, she probably said.
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Don’t want to steal tim’s thunder but if you google “judge wright brighton” the first thing that comes up is an official public list of district judges which contains her full name. She’s under W. A lot easier than all that palava he went through. Something a news ed should have done in a jiffy back at base?
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Good on you, Tim. Some craven officials at the local court, it seems. And it’s good to see a civil court case being covered….quite a rarity in some parts.
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I’ve know this happen with JPs and I had to make fuss as they only wanted their initials used or asked for their names not to be used at all!
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As explained by Kenneth Williams as the judge in ‘Carry on Cowboy:’
“I used to be a Wright, then married into the Burke family. And became a Wright-Burke…’
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I was once in a magistrates court in Essex covering a case. When it was over I asked the chair of magistrates what her name was, as she’d spoken in the sentencing etc. She refused to give me her name at all! Later, I asked the court clerk, who had been present, if I could get the magistrate’s name. She seemed embarrassed, apologised to me for what had happened and said it was the first time the magistrate had sat as chair and she’d try to find out for me. From memory, she got it for me in the end. Still, it’s ridiculous stuff. If you want to be a magistrate, or a judge, surely you are putting yourself forward as a public face? You can’t preside over a trial under a cloak of anonymity. I’ve had lawyers who have spoken in open court refuse to give me their name as well.
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Good on him. More and more magistrates and court officials are trying to hide information from the press.
Have had this situation myself, magistrates really do think they make the law not uphold it.
It is amazing how many people involved do not know the laws around court reporting.
Recently had the prosecution ask for a naming order to save his client from “ridicule and the fact they are a teenager”. She was 19 and it was drink driving.
The chair of the bench asked me if there was a good reason he should not impose the order, before I got a chance to put myself in contempt by swearing at him, the clerk stepped in to tell him he did not have the power to do that.
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Er…defence, surely? “Recently had the prosecution ask for a naming order to save his client from “ridicule and the fact they are a teenager”. She was 19 and it was drink driving.”
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The reporter (or the news desk) only had to look at Debretts …
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This isn’t uncommon. Often court staff simply don’t know judges first names and aren’t willing to ask them.
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