Judge Joseph Azzopardi will be the new Chief Justice

Judge Joseph Azzopardi, 63, will become the new chief justice on 26 April, the government said.

Azzopardi will formally take over the day after incumbent Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri retires on 25 April after reaching 65.

Members of the judiciary are required by law to retire when they reach 65, which means that Azzopardi will be taking up the top job at the law courts for a two-year term.

In a statement on Tuesday evening, the government said it advised the President to appoint Azzopardi as chief justice. The government said the Opposition was kept abreast of developments throughout the selection process.

Azzopardi has been described in legal circles as a non-controversial choice despite having once been an unsuccessful election candidate for the Labour Party.

The judge was never deeply involved in politics and is considered to be an honest and affable man.

He was also elected president of the Chamber of Advocates in 2000 and remained for three years until his appointment by a Nationalist administration as judge in 2003.

Azzopardi is currently the president of the family section of the Civil Courts.

He is married to Maria and has a daughter.