A packed Court 4 of the Royal Courts of Justice last night heard glowing tributes to the outgoing master of the rolls - and a revelation about how he intends to spend part of his retirement. The valedectory hearing before the five most senior judges of England and Wales marked the end of Sir Geoffrey Vos's six-year tenure in the ancient role. He will be succeeded by Sir Colin Birss, currently president of the Business and Property Division.
In her tribute, the lady chief justice, Baroness Carr Walton-on-the-Hill, described Vos as 'the most forward-thinking, innovative and technologically capable master of the rolls so far'.
She continued: 'His tenure will be remembered for his determined, energetic and visionary leadership in a period of extraordinary change. His work has been decisive in driving forward innovations to make the justice system capable of dealing with the challenges of the future. His work overseeing the design and implementation of the digital justice system and encouraging ADR and other forms of early dispute resolution has been seminal. His legacy will not only be felt by myself and our hundreds of colleagues throughout the judiciary, but by the millions of people who encounter the civil justice system for many, many years to come.'
The lady chief justice noted the breadth of Vos's work. 'He has not focused only on matters civil, but also worked with the family courts and tribunals, recognising the significant impact of the work of these jurisdictions on the lives of everyday people. He has endorsed the use of early and even mandatory mediation, improved availability of legal aid and early intervention by lawyers in disputes. He has also served as chair of the Civil Justice Council and the Civil Procedure Rule Committee.
'The list of Geoffrey’s achievements in civil justice could fill an entire speech by itself,' she said.
In his speech, Law Society president Brett Dixon paid tribute to Sir Geoffrey's commitment to the independence of the legal profession and leadership of bodies such as the Online Procedure Rules Committee and the UK Jurisdiction Task Force. 'One of the defining features of his leadership is his ability to combine respect for legal traditions with his recognition that the justice system must evolve.'
In a short speech beginning with tributes to the chief justices with whom he worked, Vos said: 'I believe that Sue and I have a shared a passion for reform. Not reform for reform’s sake, but reform in order to modernise and improve the judiciary of England and Wales and the justice system for the benefit of those we serve. My perspective is that not much – perhaps not enough - has changed since my predecessor, Sir George Jessel, created the modern-day office of MR through the Judicature Acts of 1873-1883.
'The system created then was brilliant then, but is less than satisfactory now, when the cases before the courts have changed beyond recognition.'
Observing that, 'most lawyers tend to move on a trajectory towards conservatism - small c – finding ever stronger arguments as their careers proceed to preserve the status quo,' Vos said: 'I have proceeded on a reverse path. As my life and career has progressed, I have seen ever stronger arguments for reform and improvement so that the systems we operate can better serve the public and businesses for whom the justice system actually exists.'
As for the future, apart from spending more time with his family and Hereford farm, Vos said he would continue his international work - and write a book on the history of the office of master of the rolls, 'something that has never been done in the some 800 years that the office has existed'.
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