March 13, 2025

BELL and others -v- Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and others (anonymity order)

Administrative Court High Court King's Bench Division Anonymity Order

Claim number: AC-2024-LON-000706

In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division

Administrative Court
In the matter of an application for judicial review

13 March 2025

Before:

The Honourable Mr Justice Chamberlain

Between:

The King (on the application of)

(1) BELL
(2) BNP
(3) BTG

-v-

1. Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
2. National Health Service England

ORDER

On an application by the Claimant for anonymity orders and case management directions

Following consideration of the documents lodged by the Claimant and the letters from the Government Legal Department dated 5 and 12 March 2025

Anonymity:

(a) Pursuant to CPR 39.2(4) and s. 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998:

(i) the names of the Second Claimant, his 17-year old child and his former spouse are to be withheld from the public and must not be disclosed in any proceedings in public;

(ii) the names of the Third Claimant, her 23-year old child and her former spouse are to be withheld from the public and must not be disclosed in any proceedings in public; and

(iii) the Second and Third Claimant are to be referred to orally and in writing
as “BNP” and “BTG” respectively.

(b) Pursuant to s. 11 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981, there must be no publication of the identity of the Second or Third Claimants, or any of the other individuals referred to in (a)(i) or (ii), or of any matter likely to lead to the identification of any of them, in any report of, or otherwise in connection with, these proceedings.

(i) the parties must within 7 days file a redacted copy of any statement of case filed, omitting the name, address and any other information likely to lead to the identification of the Second or Third Claimants or any of the other individuals referred to in (a)(i) or (ii);

(ii) if any statement of case subsequently filed includes information likely to lead to the identification of the Claimant, a redacted copy omitting that information must be filed at the same time;

(iii) unless the Court grants permission under CPR 5.4C(6), no non-party many obtain a copy of any unredacted statement of case.

(d) Any person wishing to vary or discharge this Order must make an application, served on each party.

Adjournment of permission to a hearing and directions:

(a) The application for permission to apply for judicial review is adjourned to be determined after a hearing.

(a) The permission hearing is to be listed with a time estimate of half a day, including submissions by the parties and an oral judgment by the judge if appropriate. The hearing is to be listed after consultation with counsels’ clerks, but in any event during Easter Term 2025.

(b) At least 14 days before the permission hearing, the Claimant must file and serve an electronic copy of a Permission Hearing Bundle, prepared in accordance with the guidance on the Administrative Court website and containing the following documents:

(i) the Claim Form, Statement of Facts and Grounds and any evidence or other documents filed with the Claim Form;

(ii) any Acknowledgment of Service, Summary Grounds of Defence and any accompanying documents served by any Defendant and/or Interested Party;

(iii) any Reply (together with any accompanying documents) served by the Claimant;

(iv) this Order;

(v) any other document the Court would be likely to consider material to its decision on permission to apply for judicial review.

(i) a skeleton argument, maximum 10 pages;

(ii) an electronic bundle containing any authorities which the Court needs to read at the hearing (the Authorities Bundle: see para. 22.1.2 of the Administrative Court Judicial Review Guide); and

(iii) if requested by the Court, a hard copy version of the Permission Hearing Bundle and Authorities Bundles.

(d) At least 3 days before the date listed for the hearing, any party other than the Claimant intending to participate in the hearing must file and serve any skeleton argument, maximum 10 pages.

(e) The parties have liberty to apply to the court to vary or discharge these directions.

REASONS

(1) The Claimants challenge the Secretary of State’s failure to take action to prevent or regulate the prescribing of cross-sex hormones for the treatment of gender-related distress. The date of the decision challenged is said to be 11 December 2024, when the Secretary of State took action in relation to the prescribing of puberty blockers, but not cross-sex hormones. The claim was filed on

(2) The Claimants seek directions to abridge the time for serving the AoS and other procedural directions leading to a rolled-up hearing with a time estimate of 1 ½ days on the first available date after 1 June 2025.

(3) As I said in R (Al Haq) v Secretary of State for Business and Trade [2025] EWHC 173 (Admin) at [34], in the vast majority of cases, judicial review is a two-stage process. I have applied the approach at [35] of my judgment in that case. I am not persuaded that it is appropriate to direct a rolled-up hearing in this case. The claim seeks to challenge the Secretary of State’s decision-making process. Responding to such a challenge is likely to be onerous. The preparation of evidence would likely require a detailed review of internal documents with a view to discharging the duty of candour at the post-permission stage. Although the duty of candour applies at the permission stage too, the work involved in discharging it is likely to be significantly less. In the circumstances, the Defendant should have the opportunity to seek to persuade the Court that the claim is not arguable.

(4) The degree of expedition suggested by the Claimants is not justifiable in circumstances where the Claimants waited nearly three months before filing the claim. The Defendant should have the usual 21 days to file its AoS. The Claimant may then file a Reply in accordance with CPR 54.8A in the normal way.

(5) However, a degree of expedition is warranted and is reflected in the order adjourning permission to an oral hearing during the Easter Term.