Survey reveals reports of bullying in Scottish judiciary

The 2022 UK Judicial Attitude Survey, conducted by the UCL Judicial Institute on behalf of senior judges, found that eight per cent of respondents claimed they had been bullied by politicians and civil servants.

Of the 196 full and part-time sheriffs and judges last year, 163 responded to the survey – a response rate of 83 per cent.

Six of those who said they had been bullied were summary sheriffs, four were sheriffs and three were judges in the Outer House.

Those accused of perpetrating bullying and harassment included in 10 cases of “more senior judicial officers” as well as a solicitor in one case and civil servants in three. Another was a politician and the remaining ones were judicial officeholders or lawyers.

Nearly four out of 10 respondents did not think their salaries were “reasonable”. Judges can earn up to £226,000, while sheriffs earn around £147,000.

More than half of respondents, 54 per cent, did not think that the increase in remote hearings introduced during the pandemic had benefited their work.

Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Jamie Greene said: “These findings are deeply concerning – judges’ hands are already tied thanks to many decisions taken by the SNP in relation to the justice system.

“Any political interference, including an escalation to allegations of bullying, in our judiciary would be completely unacceptable. Judges should be independent from feeling pressure from politicians.”

A spokesman for the Judicial Office for Scotland said: “The overwhelming majority of judges said they had not experienced bullying, harassment or discrimination at work in the past two years.

“All judges receive training on judicial conduct and should seek to be courteous, patient, tolerant and respect the dignity of all. Anyone who feels this high standard has not been met can report this and any allegations will be robustly investigated.”