Commentary on Sections Schedule 6 – Positions in Upper Tribunal Schedule Part 2 – Assignment internally
115.Schedule Part 2 makes provision for assigning the various members of the Upper Tribunal among the divisions.
116.The function of assigning the members of the Upper Tribunal vests in the President of Tribunals (paragraph 3(1)) but is subject to the provision made in paragraphs 4 to 7 (paragraph 3(2)).
117.A Vice-President is to be assigned to the division to which he or she is appointed or assigned to preside over. A judicial member who is assigned to act as a Vice-President under section 24(2) may also be assigned to act as a judicial member in another division (but cannot be assigned to another division to act as a Vice-President) while a legal member who is appointed to act as a Vice-President under section 26(1) may also be assigned to act as a legal member in another division (but cannot be assigned to act as a Vice-President of that Division) (paragraph 4). This requires the concurrence of the Vice-President of the division to which the member is being assigned.
118.All other legal members of the Upper Tribunal (including a person who is a legal member of the Upper Tribunal by virtue of being a Chamber President in the First-tier Tribunal) and its ordinary members are to be assigned to at least one division but may be assigned to more than one division (paragraphs 5 and 6). Any assignment to a division under paragraphs 5 and 6 requires the concurrence of the Vice-President and the agreement of the member to be assigned (paragraph 5(3) or 6(3)).
119.All other judicial members of the Upper Tribunal are to be assigned to at least one division but may be assigned to more than one division (paragraph (7(1)). A person who is authorised to act as a judicial member of the Upper Tribunal under section 18(5) is also to be assigned to at least one division but may be assigned to more than one division (paragraph 7(2)). Any assignment to a division under paragraph 7 requires the concurrence of the Vice-President and the agreement of the member being assigned (paragraph 7(3)).