Roma people: Judge made disparaging comments
A tribunal judge has been given a formal warning for making “disparaging generalisations” about the Roma community to other members of the tribunal.
The Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO) said the Lady Chief Justice, Baroness Carr, and Lord Chancellor Alex Norris, had decided on a stronger sanction for Judge Fozia Rizvi than the one recommended by the ‘nominated judge’ – the person who investigated the complaint.
It recorded that a tribunal member complained that the judge made the comments during discussions before a hearing last December.
“Judge Rizvi denied making the comments alleged or holding prejudicial views about the Roma community. She highlighted her long legal career with no previous complaints of racism or prejudice, her work supporting minority groups.
“She suggested that the complaint had been made in bad faith. However, she did not wish to provide an explanation when invited to elaborate on her allegation about the complainant’s motives.”
The nominated judge found that Judge Rizvi had made the comments alleged and rejected the allegation that the complaint had been made in bad faith, “a suggestion which was treated as an aggravating factor”.
They decided that her actions amounted to misconduct and recommended that she receive a sanction of formal advice, the lowest level of sanction available.
But Baroness Carr and Mr Norris concluded that the next step up, a formal warning, was appropriate, the JCIO said.
“They acknowledged the mitigating factors, including Tribunal Judge Rizvi’s demonstrated commitment to equality and minority groups, and did not consider the conduct to be indicative of fundamentally racist views.
“However, they considered the nature of the comments to be sufficiently improper to warrant a formal warning rather than formal advice.”