Sir David Williams / Mr Justice Williams, High Court, Family Court and Court of Protection Judge

Mr Justice Williams was appointed a High Court Judge in October 2017. Following his appointment he was appointed the Judge in charge of Family Division Appeals which he held until appointed in October 2020 as The Family Division Liaison Judge (now Family Presiding Judge) for the South-Eastern Circuit (Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Thames Valley and Milton Keynes). He was appointed to the Family Justice Council and was Acting Chair for a period and was a member of The Special Guardianship, Domestic Abuse and Medical Mediation Working Groups. In October 2018 he was appointed by the President of the Family Division to chair a Working Group to enquire into the shortages of experts in The Family Justice System. He now chairs The Family Justice Council Subcommittee on Experts in The Family Justice System. He was the Family Presiding Judge for the South Eastern Circuit from October 2020 October 2024.

Prior to his appointment to the High Court, he worked for the Legal Aid Board for three years before being called to the Bar in 1990 following which he practised in crime, family and personal injury work. He was appointed a QC in 2013 and became a specialist in International Family Law appearing in the Supreme Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union. He stood (unsuccessfully) for Parliament in 2015, was appointed a Recorder later that year and a High Court judge in 2017.

Mr Justice Williams will be speaking on Monday, 11 May at 16:45 for the Illingworth-Rees Memorial Lecture on Family justice: insights, challenges and opportunities.