Megan Lee-Devlin has been appointed as the chief executive of the HM Courts and Tribunals Service.
She succeeds Nick Goodwin, who becomes director general for policy at the Ministry of Justice.
Lee-Devlin joins from her role as DG for justice services and transformation at the MoJ, where she has driven the digital transformation of services across the justice system. She has also been responsible for the operational delivery of three essential justice services: legal aid, lasting powers of attorney and victim compensation.
HMCTS is an executive agency sponsored by the MoJ with responsibility for the administration of criminal, civil and family courts in England and Wales, as well as the reserved unified tribunals across the UK.
MoJ permanent secretary Jo Farrar said Lee-Devlin has “an outstanding track record of leading transformation and improving services for users” and “brings the leadership and ambition needed to lead HMCTS through its next phase of modernization”.
Courts and legal services minister Sarah Sackman added that Lee-Devlin “brings the vision and experience HMCTS needs to deliver excellent services for the public, support our dedicated staff and judiciary, and continue the vital work of modernising our courts and tribunals”.
Before joining the MoJ, Lee-Devlin was DG of the Central Digital and Data Office in the Cabinet Office, overseeing the government’s digital, data and technology function. She joined the civil service from the private sector, having worked at IBM, PwC and McKinsey & Company on digital, analytics and organisational transformation.
In an interview with CSW this spring, Lee-Devlin said she had spent her career “tackling wicked problems” in private companies such as IBM, PwC and McKinsey before moving to the Cabinet Office in 2021, initially on a short-term contract. She said after starting work in the civil service, she "discovered how great it is to have a job that you really jump out of bed in the morning to do and where you leave each day knowing that you’ve really done work that matters".
She moved to the Ministry of Justice in 2024 to get “closer to the coalface”, working on services for people who are, as she puts it, “often at the most challenging point in their lives”.
In a statement, Lee-Devlin said it is “a great privilege to be appointed to lead HMCTS at this important time”.
“I look forward to working with the independent judiciary, ministers, system partners and the 19,000 committed civil servants working to deliver modern and efficient courts and tribunals for everyone who relies on them,” she added.