Dear Brian,

SUBJECT: Freedom of Information Request

Thank you for your e-mail of 22^nd August 2009, in which you sought to clarify a number of points in my previous reply to you dated 14^th August 2009.

In answer to your point about ascertaining "…the validity of any individual who claims to be qualified…", I should clarify that following appointment all judicial office holders are required to be sworn in - to take the judicial oath and oath of allegiance - before they can commence sitting. Information recording this event is a matter for each court, and differs from court to court. The information is not private, but because the information is kept in a variety of ways I cannot provide you with a general answer to your question "where the public records concerning such oaths by individuals may be accessed". Some courts, like the Royal Courts of Justice, record an individual's oath in a Swearing In Book. Other courts, as I have previously indicated, may record the event in the individual's personal file.

Notwithstanding that it is a requirement to be sworn in before a newly appointed judicial office holder can commence sitting, if you still wish to verify the date when a particular judicial office holder was sworn in, you may request this information directly from the court where the individual sits. When writing you may also wish to ask whether the court in question holds the information in a form that can be shown to you. If it does then arrangements for you to view the record can be made direct with the court. However, if the information you request is held on an individual's file, the court will be able to inform you when that individual was sworn in, but you will not be granted access to their file - such a request for access would likely be refused under Section 40 (personal information) of the Freedom of Information Act.

As part of our obligations under the FOIA, the Ministry of Justice has an independent review process. If you are dissatisfied with this decision, you may write to request an internal review. The internal review will be carried out by someone who did not make the original decision, and they will re-assess how the Department handled the original request.

If you wish to request an internal review, please write or send an email to the Data Access and Compliance Unit within two months of the date of this letter, at the following address:

Data Access and Compliance Unit

Information Directorate

Ministry of Justice

1^st Floor, Zone 1C

Post point 1.41

12 Petty France

London

SW1H 9AJ

e-mail: [email address]

If you remain dissatisfied after an internal review decision, you have the right to apply to the Information Commissioner's Office under Section 50 of the FOIA. You can contact the Information Commissioner's Office at the following address:

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

Internet: https://www.ico.gov.uk/Global/contact_us.aspx

Yours sincerely

Geoff Hiden