Freedom to express beliefs not unlimited – court

A lay magistrate with 15 years’ experience has lost his appeal after being removed from the bench for speaking to the media about his Christian views on parenting. He did so despite explicit guidance that the judiciary should not communicate with the media.

Richard Page publicly made known his view that it was not in a child’s best interests to be adopted by anyone other than a mother and father, nor was it normal to be adopted by a single parent or same-sex couple.

He had already been reprimanded for speaking to the media but, despite a warning from the Lord Chief Justice, Page continued commenting and was eventually removed for judicial misconduct. The court took the view that he would approach cases involving adoption by same-sex couples on the basis of his own preconceived beliefs – not on the basis of law or evidence.