My recap of the second and final day of the OPEN aspect of the Palestine Action appeal hearing.

My recap of yesterday’s Palestine Action appeal hearing, including questions and observations from the bench.

The Court of Appeal hearing for the Home Secretary's appeal against the finding that the proscription of Palestine Action was unlawful has been listed for 28 April.

Divisional Court grants Home Secretary’s app for permission to appeal and suspends its quashing of proscription of Palestine Action pending determination of the appeal. Claimant’s app for permission to cross-appeal refused. The proscription Order remains in force. www.judiciary.uk/judgments/hu...

High Court’s judgment finding the proscription of Palestine Action was an unjustified interference with rights to freedom of association and assembly under arts 10/11 ECHR, and inconsistent with the Home Secretary’s own policy. www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/u...

The High Court will hand down judgment tomorrow in the judicial review against the Home Secretary’s proscription of Palestine Action.

Congratulations @alasdairmackenzie.bsky.social, massively well-deserved!

A highly sceptical Court of Appeal decision on the origins and consequences of the principle of jury equity and Saini J's decision in the Trudi Warner case. caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/crim/20...

The High Court has set aside the Solicitors’ Disciplinary Tribunal’s determination against Ashley Hurst, relating to correspondence sent to Dan Needle for Nadhim Zahawi, for insufficient analysis/reasoning, legal misdirection, and unfairness. caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewhc/admin/2...

Lord Reed has announced his intention to retire from the Supreme Court on 10 January 2027. www.supremecourt.uk/news/lord-re...

The IPT has dismissed complaints made by two Guantanamo Bay detainees alleging public law illegality by UK security agencies in their ill-treatment by the US: www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/u... The substantive findings/reasons for dismissing all substantive grounds are contained in a CLOSED judgment.

Lord Sales, "The UK Supreme Court’s approach to customary international law" (Presentation to ECtHR Judges) supremecourt.uk/uploads/spee...

Good post from @finishedloading.bsky.social. An assertion by a public authority of compliance with unincorporated international law can't per se incorporate that law so as to give rise to enforceable + interpretable obligations in domestic law. To do otherwise might turn the clock back to 1688.

There were back to back interim relief hearings (application + appeal) in the Palestine Action case yesterday. Here, @finishedloading.bsky.social breaks down the judgments of the EWHC and EWCA denying interim relief against proscription to Palestine Action.

Two recent blogs from the @admincourtblog.bsky.social team on the VAT exemption case: Part I on Pepper v Hart by @anuragdeb.bsky.social is here: administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2025/06/19/a... Part II on the ECHR dimension by me is here: administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2025/06/23/a...

I'm a fan of pepper in my food, but not Pepper in my case law* Here, I use the private schools VAT JR to explain why. *The slander of terrible jokes will not be tolerated.

CA has listed a hearing on 26 June for Liberty’s appeal against the HC’s refusal of permission to challenge the length of the EHRC’s Code of Practice consultation, 4 days before the consultation is to end. @samuelwillis.bsky.social and I blogged below on the HC’s reasons for refusing permission.

The AG is creating a new Senior Treasury Counsel (Civil) Group, which "sits alongside proposed changes to the role of First Treasury Counsel, principally by relaxing the current requirement that the postholder undertakes work exclusively for government." www.gov.uk/government/n...

It was a pleasure to reflect candidly on the role (both good and bad) social media use played in my pupillage application journey! Anurag was one of the first legal SM contacts I interacted and then met with in person, so here’s a picture from our ALBA moot participation 3 years ago to reminisce!

I am very pleased to have accepted an offer of traineeship at Matrix Chambers, commencing in October 2026. I can't wait to get started working on the cutting-edge legal issues raised across Chambers' immense expertise in a range of practice areas.

Court of Appeal will hand down judgment in SSHD’s appeal against High Court’s judgment upholding Liberty’s serious disruption regulations judicial review this Friday.

Singh LJ on D’s duty of candour in JR: “The Court should (in proper evidence, i.e. in a witness statement) be given a full, accurate and clear explanation of the decision-making process used by the public authority concerned and should not… assets.caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/civ/202...

The JCPC (Reed judgment) affirms that the duty of candour in JR applies at permission stage ([91]) and non-compliance with the duty ([93]) can be a factor in favour of granting permission. caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukpc/2025/14

This is a nowadays rare example of the UKSC applying the principle of interpretation that "courts should seek to interpret domestic law in a way that is compatible with the United Kingdom’s international treaty obligations" to find in favour of a C's construction of statute (here, the BNA 1981).

UKSC allows Cs' appeals in N3/ZA, holding that, where the SSHD withdraws citizenship deprivation decisions, the decisions are to be treated as having no effect for determining one's citizenship status in the period from the date of the order until it is withdrawn. www.supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2...

The contours of rationality administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2025/02/21/t...

No Retrospective Effect of Remedial Order administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2025/02/21/n...

No “own motion” duty in discretion fettering cases administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2025/01/31/n...

A really big decision on non-refoulement, raising a myriad of important issues, which I think is likely to reach the Supreme Court.

CA finds that, where SSHD considers a refugee poses a national security risk, there is no obligation to conduct a balancing exercise weighing the risk posed, against cost etc of any measures to ameliorate the risk, to lawfully revoke refugee status. caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/civ/202...

[27]: Procedural fairness is a hard-edged question of law and an appellate tribunal is not limited to overturning a decision on the basis that it was outside the range of reasonable outcomes; the question is simply whether the lower tribunal's decision is wrong. www.judiciary.uk/judgments/ra...

Underhill LJ in related case heard by same CA constitution: “It is a matter of basic fairness that a person whom the Secretary of State proposes to deprive of British citizenship should have the opportunity to put forward reasons in opposition…

CA overrules Upper Tribunal approach to deprivation of citizenship for fraud appeals in Ciceri and Chimi: caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/civ/202...

Important judgment from Chamberlain J on GLD communications to Admin Court about planned immigration removals which are not copied to Cs. Arose in context of Home Office policy of withholding departure times from Cs to prevent "targeted disruption". caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewhc/admin/2...

A striking feature of the decisions that have cited Imam, where a public law breach was found, is that all have either granted a mandatory order or indicated it may be granted. None have refused it where it was sought. @lewisgrahamlaw.bsky.social and I consider this and other issues in our post.

CA allows SSHD’s appeal against an Upper Tribunal order directing she admit to the UK, from France, parents who were separated from their 2 young children (6 and 9) when attempting to travel to the UK by small boat from France. assets.caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewca/civ/202...

Very interesting decision of the High Court, relying on systemic failures by the Home Secretary to comply with her statutory duties to provide suitable asylum accommodation, to justify granting a mandatory order in a discrete case of admitted non-compliance.

@finishedloading.bsky.social and I look at the Brown judgment from yesterday, in which the NI High Court granted mandamus compelling the holding of a public inquiry for the first time in a Troubles-related case. Far from being radical, we think it was entirely in keeping with recent UKSC authority.

The PSED was always going to be one of the main victims of the NSD test in the CJCA 2015, and the case law demonstrates it. The XL Bully Ban judgment demonstrates particularly the extent to which public authorities can get around PSED obligations (particularly the timing aspect) by relying on NSD.

Lord Sales, Purpose in Law and in Interpretation www.supremecourt.uk/docs/sir-chr... Sales argues purpose plays impt role in common law and stat interp. He also challenges argument (by e.g. Burrows) to replace legislative intent with stat purpose, arguing it does not sidestep legislative purpose.

Last Monday, the EWCA gave judgment in Oakley/Sneddon v SSJ, concerning rationality challenges against SSJ decisions rejecting Parole Board advice re open conditions transfers. I argue that the judgment contains fundamental flaws and raises issues meriting UKSC consideration.

Very pleased to have been cited judicially for the first time (with @LewisGrahamLaw.bsky.social) by the High Court..! Many thanks to HHJ Tindal for reading and citing our @ukcla.bsky.social blog on rationality and the PB re open conditions transfers. caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewhc/admin/2...

The Legacy Act Judgment administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2024/09/20/t...

The rule against fettering discretion is a rule of general application in public law. @lewisgrahamlaw.bsky.social and I suggest the case law reveals a typology of four broad classes of powers determining whether the rule applies in a given case.

New post from me and @finishedloading.bsky.social looking at what classes of power the "rule against fettering discretion" applies to (or: What Is a Residual Common Law Power Anyway?)

Decisions on whether to prosecute, legal aid eligibility for asylum interviews, and regulation of sewage sludge - what do they have in common? According to Fordham J, applying a “dual” variable intensity review to determine if they are irrational.

Common law review of devolved primary legislation administrativecourtblog.wordpress.com/2024/08/20/c...