Chief Magistrate, St. Helena Government

£68,000 pa + Benefits

5 Years Fixed Term Contract

A self-governing overseas territory of the United Kingdom, St Helena is an island of 47 square miles and around 4,000 people in the South Atlantic. With Cape Town in South Africa some 1,700 miles distant, the Islanders enjoy a unique lifestyle in truly unspoilt, friendly and peaceful surroundings.

St Helena is poised for the biggest transformation in the island’s history, with the imminent construction of an airport. It will grow from a centralised economy with 1,000 visitors per year to a market economy with up to 30,000 visitors per year. The Chief Magistrate will play a crucial role in providing professionally qualified input to a legal system based on English Law and modified by various local enactments. A crucial aspect of the appointment will be to improve the quality of the administration of justice in St. Helena where retaining and enhancing the role of Lay Justices will be fundamental.

The Role:

  • To sit in the Magistrates’ Court, usually with at least one Justice of the Peace (but with power to sit alone) to deal with a variety of criminal and civil cases in conjunction with training and mentoring both the Justices of the Peace and the Clerk of the Peace.
  • To be a Coroner (along with the current Lay Coroners) mentoring and training the Lay Coroners and specifically (by the end of the first years in office) to make recommendations for modernising the outdated Coroners Ordinance.
  • To be the President of the Land Planning and Development Appeals Tribunal and President of the Media Standards Commission combined with being a Trustee of the Legal Assistance Fund (Legal Aid Fund) so as to bring a legally-qualified and impartial mind to bear on the allocation of resources.
  • To convene and Chair meetings of the Court Users’ Group, amongst other responsibilities (please see microsite for full details).

The Person:

  • A Solicitor or Barrister qualified in England and Wales (or comparable qualification in Scotland, Northern Ireland, or a Commonwealth or EU jurisdiction) with at least 10 years experience of both civil and criminal work (including advocacy) and eligible for appointment to judicial office in the jurisdiction in which the legal qualification is held;
  • Fluency in written and spoken English; combined with good IT skills, including familiarity with all components of Microsoft Office;
  • Demonstrable ability for rational and objective analysis of issues in tandem with the gravitas and credibility to suitably inspire and mentor those around them;
  • Motivated and organised ideally with experience in judicial or quasi-judicial office and an understanding of living and working in a small island community

Benefits for this post include:

  • Paid flights and sea passages to and from post and for annual overseas leave
  • 30 days annual leave (pro rata basis), not including travel to/from home country
  • Relocation allowance
  • Rental allowance
  • Utilities allowance

If you would like more information about the post please contact KedellWorboys on 0203 170 8705 or 0203 170 8706, email or write to St. Helena Government UK Representative, 16 Old Queen Street, London, SW1H 9HP.

To apply for the role, download parts A and B of the application form below and email your completed document

The closing date for applications is Friday 3rd February 2012.