Lord Justice David Neuberger is set to become the country's youngest law Lord at the age of 58 after serving only two years at the Court of Appeal, it was announced this week (13 December).

Neuberger's rise, one of the quickest ever to the upper echelons of the judiciary, will see him take over from the Right Honorable Lord Nicholls on 10 January, 2007, following the latter's retirement.

Neuberger was called to the Bar in 1974, taking silk in 1987. He became a High Court judge assigned to the chancery division in 1996 and was promoted to the Court of Appeal in 2004.

A spokesman for judiciary said: "He was a judge for less than a decade. This has been a quick rise reflecting his ability."

Neuberger's profile was further raised in October when he was appointed to chair a working party charged with drawing up a blueprint for widening access to the Bar.