Public appointment: legal member appointed to the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans today announced the appointment of Catriona Maclean as a legal member of the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland.

Legal Member

Catriona (Cat) Maclean is the only solicitor to have won the prestigious title of “Solicitor of the Year” twice, at the Law Awards of Scotland in 2015 and 2012, having previously been short-listed for the award in 2010, after spending 10 years at the Scottish Bar as an Advocate form 1998-2008. 

As a partner at MBM Commercial, and as a member of the Law Society’s Professional Conduct Committee, Catriona has a keen understanding of the issues currently faced in the legal sector including the wellbeing and mental health of staff, morale, remote and hybrid working, training, learning and development for junior lawyers, recruitment and retention. Having held posts within her firm which include staff wellbeing, recruitment, development and training, and equality and diversity partner, she has considerable experience of many of the skills and attributes required for the Board, including setting criteria for selection to include as wide and diverse a range of candidates as possible, reviewing and evaluating applications, conducting interviews and undertaking candidate assessments. 

Catriona has been a partner for over 10 years, and having held a number of committee and board posts throughout her career, she is experienced in team management and collaborative board decision making. She is praised in Chambers as “demonstrating strong interpersonal skills, commerciality and leadership” which make her particularly well suited to the work of the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland.

Appointment

This appointment will be for four years and will run from 1 June 2022 to 31 May 2026.

This appointment is regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.

Remuneration

This appointment is part-time and attracts a remuneration of £296 per day for a time commitment of up to 40 days in any financial year.

Other ministerial appointments

Cat Maclean does not hold any other public appointments.

Political activity

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity within the last five years (if there is any to be declared) to be made public. 

Cat Maclean has had no political activity within the last five years.

Background

The Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland (JABS) was established as a statutory advisory Non-Departmental Public Body on 1 June 2009, under the terms of the Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act 2008.

JABS plays a key role in ensuring an open and transparent selection process based on merit for specific judicial appointments. It makes recommendations to the First Minister about applicants considered suitable for the following appointments:

• Senator of the College of Justice
• Sheriff Principal
• Sheriff
• Part-time Sheriff
• Summary Sheriff
• Part-time Summary Sheriff
• Chair of the Scottish Land Court and
• Scottish Tribunal appointments

The Board’s aims are:

• to attract applicants of the highest calibre, recognising the need to encourage diversity in the range of those available for selection and
• to recommend applicants for appointment to judicial office on merit through processes that are fair, transparent and command respect