AMH -v- West Northamptonshire Council (anonymity order)

Administrative CourtHigh CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Claim number: CO/2466/2023

In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division
Administrative Court

4 July 2023

Before:

The Honourable Mr Justice Linden

Between:

The King on the application of
AMH

-v-

West Northamptonshire Council

Order

On an application by the Claimant dated 4 July 2023
Following consideration of the documents lodged by the Claimant
ORDER by the Honourable Mr Justice Linden

  1. By 4pm on Tuesday 18 July 2023, the Defendant will file and serve its Acknowledgment of Service and Summary Grounds of Defence including its response to the Claimant’s application for interim relief and any evidence on which it relies in resisting that application.
  2. The matter will be listed for a hearing with a time estimate of 2 hours in the week commencing 24 July 2023 if possible, for consideration of the Claimant’s application for interim relief as well as permission and directions if time allows. It is suitable for a Deputy High Court Judge.
  3. Pending the hearing referred to in paragraph 2 above, or further order:
    a. Pursuant to CPR r21.2(3) the Claimant may conduct the proceedings without a litigation friend.
    b. Pursuant to CPR rule 39.2(4), there shall not be disclosed in any report of the proceedings the name or address of the Claimant or any details leading to his identification. If referred to, he shall only be referred to as AMH.
    c. Pursuant to CPR rule 5.4C a person who is not a party to the proceedings may obtain a copy of a statement of case, judgment or order from the court records only if the statement of case, judgment or order has been anonymised such that: (a) the Claimant is referred to in those documents only as indicated above. and (b) that any reference to the name of the Claimant has been deleted from those documents.
    d. Any person affected paragraphs 3(a) and (b) of this Order may apply on notice to have them set aside or varied.

Reasons

  1. The Claimant is a Sudanese national who arrived in this country on 9 August 2022 and has claimed asylum. His case is that his date of birth is 14 February 2006 and that he has therefore been incorrectly treated as an adult of the purposes of providing him with accommodation for the last 11 months.
  2. He is living in a hotel in Rugby and does not give particularly cogent evidence of the difficulties which being in adult accommodation causes him. Moreover, he has been slow in coming to court and aspects of his claim appear to be out of time. However, given that he says that he is a child and has produced what he says is a copy of his birth certificate to prove it, I accept that his situation needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.
  3. I have therefore made the directions above. The directions in paragraph 3 are made on an interim basis. The issues of whether there should be a litigation friend and an order for anonymity can be revisited, if necessary, when more is known of the Defendant’s views.