An ombudsman has been chosen to oversee the appointment of judges in Northern Ireland after official concerns about recruitment competitions.
Mr Karamjit Sukhmindar Singh will be the first Judicial Appointments Ombudsman and will begin investigating complaints about the process this month.
His predecessor, Commissioner for Judicial Appointments John Simpson, found systematic failings after he examined two complaints last year.
Mr Singh said: "It is vital that people in Northern Ireland have confidence in the justice system and the integrity of the new framework for appointing the judiciary.
"Accountability, impartiality and transparency are important aspects of this."
Mr Singh has been appointed for five years and will be independent of the judiciary and government. His job replaces that of Mr Simpson, who looked at two complaints about appointments to the posts of part-time Resident Magistrate and the Master of the High Court Family Division.
He acknowledged improvements in the system since the 1990s but discovered misinterpretation of the guidelines for choosing applicants and recommended wider advertising.
The Ombudsman will not investigate complaints about judicial conduct as these are the responsibility of the Lord Chief Justice for Northern Ireland, Sir Brian Kerr.
Mr Singh is also a Commissioner for the UK's Electoral Commission and is a former civil service commissioner as well as a Police Authority complaints commissioner for England and Wales.
PA