Jo Hickman and Gareth Hughes have been appointed to the Civil Justice Council (CJC) from 30 September 2017 to 29 September 2020, whilst Andrew Parker and William Wood have been reappointed from 11 September 2017 to 10 September 2020.

Jo Hickman is currently the Director of the Public Law Project (PLP). Previously, she was Head of Casework at PLP and a solicitor at Fisher Meredith LLP. In both roles, she managed active public law and judicial review caseloads.

Between 2002 and 2005, Jo was a caseworker at Refugee Legal Centre, representing asylum claimants in the Oakington fast-track. She is a member of a member of the Law Society Access to Justice Committee, and a Management Committee member and Treasurer of the Legal Aid Practitioners Group.

Gareth Hughes is the Chief Executive of Marston Holdings. From 2010 – 2012, he was the Deputy Chief Executive of Marston Holdings. Gareth was the Commercial and Finance Director of Marston Holdings, from 2007 – 2010. He was a Corporate Finance Executive at Old Mutual Securities from 2000 to 2002. Gareth was also a Financial Services Executive at KPMG.

Andrew Parker is a partner at DAC Beachcroft. He is extremely well regarded within the profession and industry. He was a former President of the Federation of Insurance Lawyers (FOIL), and former member of the Civil Procedure Rule Committee. He was one of the expert assessors for Lord Justice Jackson’s original Civil Litigation Costs Review in 2009/10, and again for the recently completed review of fixed recoverable costs.

William Wood QC Is a barrister at Brick Court Chambers. He is one of the country’s leading commercial mediators, and is the member representing the ADR (Alternate Dispute Resolution) community and interest. He chairs CJC’s ADR working party. His professional practice involves complex and high-profile arbitrations and mediations in the UK and internationally.

CJC is responsible for keeping the civil justice system under review, advising on change and procedural reform and considering how to make the system more accessible, fair and efficient.

These appointments and reappointments have been made in line with the Commissioner’s Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/appointments-to-the-civil-justice-council