The United Kingdom Association Of Fee Paid Judges is run by a committee.  Members are elected annually and the Chair’s term of office is 2 years.  We are always happy to welcome new members to the Committee.

Steven Gasztowicz QC

Chairman

Steven Gasztowicz QC was called to the Bar in 1981 and took silk in 2009. He is a member of Cornerstone Barristers in London, practising mainly in land and property law, administrative matters, and commercial law. He is also a door tenant on the Midland Circuit. He has been a recorder since 2009, dealing with crime, general civil work, and specialist chancery matters. He also sits as a Deputy High Court Judge in both the Queen’s Bench and Chancery Divisions.

Sarah Smith

Membership

Sarah Smith has been a DDJ since 2004 and sits weekly on the Western and London and South East Circuits with a s8 and Court of Protection ticket alongside civil work. She is an accredited Mediator with CeDR and ADR Group. Following a career as a commercial litigator at Herbert Smith in London and Burges Salmon in Bristol, Sarah spent five years as Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of the West of England.    

Peter Causton

Treasurer

Peter is a Civil and Commercial Mediator and Deputy District Judge as well as being a dual qualified solicitor and barrister and member of the Law Society Council. He is the first person in England and Wales to hold two practising certificates concurrently.

Yvette Genn

Social Secretary

Debbie Stringer

Membership Secretary (Recruitment)

Debbie is a fee paid tribunal Judge and Deputy District Judge. Prior to taking up her judicial role she successfully combined a career in private practice with her role as an academic.

Chloe Phillips

Co-opted Member

I qualified as a solicitor in 1996. After specialising in professional negligence litigation for 20 years, working at Pinsents, RPC and BLM I accepted the opportunity to take on a new role as Risk Management partner for Harrison Clark Rickerbys.
 
I was appointed as a Deputy District Judge in 2008 and spent a few years exploring courts on the London Circuit before transferring to the Midland Circuit, where I am now based. I very much enjoy and appreciate the additional perspective which being a DDJ provides.

Tim Gascoyne

Co-opted Member

Timothy was admitted as a solicitor in 1983 and has been a Deputy District Judge (Magistrates Court) since 1999.
Possibly uniquely DDJ’s are not appointed to a circuit.  Currently he mainly sits in London and Midlands but previously has enjoyed sitting as far afield as Cardiff and Teeside.  He presided over the Alton Towers noise abatement case and  DPP v Jones which clarified the law with regard to road traffic law speed signage. 
Having been a sole practitioner for twenty years dealing exclusively with Crime he is now a consultant, still defending in Magistrates Courts and Police stations. He attained Higher Rights earlier this year and is taking his first steps in Crown Court advocacy. 
In his spare time he volunteer stewards at music festivals helping raise money for charity. 

 

Wendy Brown

Wendy Brown

Committee Member

Wendy has practiced as a Solicitor since 1993, specialising for the last 19 years in defending high value, complex, and sensitive clinical negligence claims.  She was appointed as a DDJ on the Western Circuit in 2014 and also holds a private family ticket

Could you spare the equivalent of 1-2 hours of your time per month? Want to be up to date with developments in the Judicial world and have a say in the development of the judicial role?

Key responsibilities will include:-

  • Ensuring the online database is kept up-to-date, including following up bounced e-mail addresses which occur when members change their details without letting us know;
  • Taking periodic exports of the database for safekeeping in case of disaster!
  • Working with others to produce a flyer, in hard copy and e-format, extolling the advantages of membership of the Association and giving key contact details;
  • Developing, over time, a membership recruitment and retention strategy, including forging contacts with other organisations and events where we can advertise the existence of the Association to potential members.

It is inherent in an organisation of part-time judges that the vast majority of us have more than one job and are therefore extremely busy.  But if the Association is to continue to thrive we need someone, now, to focus on this vital area.

If you think you could be the person for the job – or would just like some more information on what the role would entail – please contact us

3 + 8 =