Blog
R(Gallaher) v Competition and Markets Authority and the Search for the Principle of Equal Treatment
Fred Allen
26 August 2020
Office for Students refusal to register higher education provider unlawful due to failure to delegate and ‘secret policy’
The Bloomsbury Institute was fighting to survive financially after the Office for Students refused its application for registration. It brought a judicial review challenge which revealed that an unpublished policy had been followed. The policy had been formulated by an official who did not have the power to make the relevant decisions.
19 August 2020
International Court of Justice and UN General Assembly do not alter the outcome of the Chagos Islands challenge
In a February 2019 Advisory Opinion, the International Court of Justice stated that, under international law, the decolonisation of Mauritius by the UK has never been lawfully completed and the UK must therefore “end its administration” of the Chagos islands.
7 July 2020
Voter ID laws and the way courts interpret legislation
Interpreting legislation is both an art and a science. This recent Court of Appeal case illustrates how judges do it in the context of the statutory scheme used to introduce controversial voter ID pilot schemes.
20 February 2020
The High Court confirms that unincorporated associations may participate in both judicial review claims and statutory challenges
Even if it is generally more straightforward for the claimant to be a legal person, this judgment may give confidence to the likes of amateur sports clubs and campaigning pressure groups considering challenging the exercise of public power.
25 September 2019
Enemies of the constitution? The words of those attacking independent judges are corrosive and wrong
Everyone has an opinion on yesterday’s decision of the UK Supreme Court. Boris Johnson said on television that he profoundly disagreed with it. Jacob Rees-Mogg reportedly called it a ‘constitutional coup’ on a cabinet conference call. Former Lord Chancellor Michael Gove was distinctly equivocal about it when interviewed on the Today programme. Laura Kuenssberg reported on Twitter that a No 10 source said ‘the Supreme Court is wrong and has made a serious mistake in extending its reach into these political matters’. The fact these people all claim they will still ‘respect’ the decision does not detract from the corrosiveness of their sentiments.