Agilient has delivered close to 20 judicial security reviews of judges’ homes, each following the same structured method, so an Australian court can meet its duty of care consistently across its bench.
THE CHALLENGE
Judicial officers hear serious and often contentious matters, and the risk that comes with that work does not stay in the courtroom. It can follow a judge into their private life and their home. The court has a duty of care to its judicial officers and wanted a consistent, authoritative way to assess that risk rather than relying on case-by-case arrangements. To provide security for judges at home, it needed an independent adviser able to work with discretion, apply recognised standards, and consider a threat environment ranging from opportunistic crime to targeted behaviour by aggrieved litigants, fixated individuals or issue-motivated groups.
OUR APPROACH
Agilient has supported the court over several years with a program of residential security assessments for its judicial officers. Each review follows the same method, aligned with AS ISO 31000:2018 and SA HB 167, so findings are comparable across the program. Every review is planned with the court and the judicial officer to protect privacy and keep the work discreet.
A threat assessment considers the credible range of people who might seek to cause harm. An on-site assessment examines how well the residence and its existing arrangements manage those risks, from the boundary to the household’s response plan. Agilient also reviews what personal information is publicly available online, because a home address, family details or a predictable routine can increase a person’s exposure more than any physical weakness. Recommendations are proportionate to the assessed threat and balanced against the realities of family life, so the measures adopted can be sustained.
THE OUTCOME
The program gives the court a consistent, repeatable basis for meeting its duty of care.
- A confidential report for each judicial officer, with a prioritised recommendation register
- Recommendations across physical, technical, procedural and online exposure controls, proportionate to the assessed risk
- One standard method applied across close to 20 reviews, supporting consistent and defensible decisions by the court
Related services: executive protection, protective security and PSPF consulting, security risk assessment consultants. Sector experience: government security consultant. To discuss a similar project, contact Agilient.