Lord Woolf was called to the Bar in 1955, and was appointed to the Queen's Bench Division of the High Court of Justice in 1979, a Lord Justice of Appeal in 1986, and a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary in 1992. Between 1996 and 2000 he held the position of Master of the Rolls and in 2000 was appointed Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales; a position from which he retired in September 2005.

Christopher Campbell-Holt holds a research post in commercial law at the international law firm, Norton Rose LLP.

Lord Woolf's judicial career has spanned four decades; culminating in five years as Lord Chief Justice. Now his most influential papers and lectures are published together for the first time. They present a remarkable overview and commentary on the judicial and legal reforms of recent decades, and offer an unparalleled in sight into the views of one of the most influential figures in recent British legal history.