The Attorney General, Ellie Reeves KC MP, has appointed Jocelyn Ledward KC of QEB Hollis Whiteman Chambers as First Senior Treasury Counsel at the Central Criminal Court, effective 1 April 2027.
She will be the first woman to lead the Treasury Counsel team, and succeeds Tom Little KC, who has held the role since April 2024.
The appointment is for three years. Ledward will lead the team and oversee the operation of the Treasury Counsel system while continuing to prosecute cases herself.
She was appointed Junior Treasury Counsel in 2014 and Senior Treasury Counsel in 2022. She has practised in serious and complex criminal law from QEB Hollis Whiteman Chambers since 1999, was appointed a Recorder of the Crown Court in 2022 and became King’s Counsel in 2024.
Treasury Counsel are based at the Old Bailey, where they take on many of the most demanding prosecutions in England and Wales. They also advise and appear on behalf of the Law Officers, government departments and principal prosecuting authorities.
The Attorney General said Ledward “will bring considerable experience, leadership and judgement to one of the most important roles in our criminal justice system”.
Reeves also thanked Little for his “dedicated service” as First Senior Treasury Counsel.
Ledward said: “I am honoured to be appointed First Senior Treasury Counsel. Treasury Counsel play a vital role in the criminal justice system, and I am proud to be the first woman to lead the team.”
Treasury Counsel are appointed by the Attorney General in consultation with the Director of Public Prosecutions. The Crown Prosecution Service’s statement of expectations says recruitment is delegated to the Treasury Counsel Committee, which is chaired by the Chief Crown Prosecutor for London (North).
The committee includes members of the Attorney General’s Office and the CPS, together with First Senior Treasury Counsel.
The statement says recruitment runs on a three-year cycle to align with periods of appointment. First Senior Treasury Counsel serves three years. Senior and Junior Treasury Counsel serve six years, made up of three years initially with the option of a further three, and extension is at the discretion of the Law Officers.
Treasury Counsel are based in “the Room” at the Central Criminal Court. The statement says their work “will naturally include, but is not confined to, homicide and counter-terrorism work, especially multi-defendant cases”, and is not limited to London.
Senior Treasury Counsel are expected to obtain Developed Vetting clearance, the statement says. It also says there is no requirement for Senior Treasury Counsel to have taken silk.
The Attorney General’s Office has previously announced that Mark Heywood QC would take over as First Senior Treasury Counsel from Richard Whittam QC, who was appointed in 2013. That announcement gave the team as 10 Senior and 7 Junior Treasury Counsel, and also described the First Senior role as a three-year appointment.
The title Treasury Counsel derives from the period when all Crown Counsel at the Central Criminal Court were instructed by the Treasury Solicitor. That procedure changed in 1908, after which the Director of Public Prosecutions instructed the permanent counsel based there.