We can only deal with complaints about the personal conduct of judicial office holders. This means that we cannot accept complaints about a judge’s decision or the way a judge has managed a case. Please see the ‘What can I complain about?’ page for further information before making a complaint. Complaints which fall outside our remit will be rejected.

A complaint to the JCIO must be made within three months of the matter complained of. We can only extend this timescale in exceptional circumstances. If proceedings are ongoing, please do not wait until the case has concluded to lodge your complaint. If the reason for the delay in making a complaint is due to medical reasons, the JCIO may seek medical evidence to verify the claim.

The JCIO may defer the investigation of a complaint if it deems necessary to do so.

A complaint to the JCIO must be made in writing. In setting your complaint you need to provide:

  • Your name and contact details
  • Name of the judicial office holder you wish to complain about
  • Date of the incident you are complaining about and where it took place (i.e. name of the court or provide your court case number, where applicable)
  • Detail of your complaint (i.e. what the judge said or did to make you think their actions amount to misconduct)

We may not be able to accept a complaint for consideration if the above details are not provided. For further information about the level of detail to include see the ‘What do we need from you’ page on this site.

Please do not send hearing bundles or large amounts of documents with, or in support of, your complaint. We do not require such documentation to consider complaints of misconduct. We cannot return documentation to complainants. If, having assessed your complaint, we need further information, we will contact you to request it.

If you wish to submit a complaint, please click here:


Make Your Complaint


Guidance on how to view and upload portal comments, the JCIO's communication method on this platform, can be found - here.

If you are experiencing any issues with our online portal, please email us at general.enquiries@judicialconduct.gov.uk.


General enquiries

If you wish to make a general enquiry, email general.enquiries@judicialconduct.gov.uk. Please note that complaints sent to this mailbox will not be responded to.