Masters of the Bench

The first government lawyer to go direct from the Senior Civil Service to the High Court Bench, and solicitor-qualified, The Hon Mrs Justice (Rowena) Collins Rice DBE CB was appointed to the Queen’s Bench Division in 2020 after a 35 year career in central government spanning policy, legal professional and organisational leadership roles, principally in the fields of constitution, legislation and law.  Formerly Director-General of the Attorney General’s Office, she worked with the last four Ministerial holders of that office including while latterly sitting part-time as a Deputy High Court Judge. 

She was previously the Secretary to the Leveson Inquiry into the press, and before that led on constitutional reform in the Cabinet Office for Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.  Her earlier career was largely spent in the Home Office and the former Department for Constitutional Affairs, and she was a founding member of the Board of the Ministry of Justice, as its first Director-General (Democracy, Constitution and Law) and Chief Legal Officer.

She sits in the Administrative Court and the Media and Communications List of the QBD, and retains a particular interest in constitutional and public law and in encouraging others from unusual backgrounds to explore judicial appointment.