NL -v- London Borough of Barnet

Administrative CourtHigh CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Claim number: AC-2024-LON-003510

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

In the matter of an application for judicial review

28 October 2024

Before:

the Honourable Mr Justice Sweeting

Between:

The King
on the application of
NL
(A child, by his litigation friend CH)

-v-

London Borough of Barnet

Order

Notification of the Judge’s decision on the application for permission to apply for judicial review (CPR 54.11, 54.12)

Following consideration of the documents lodged by the Claimant

ORDER by the Honourable Mr Justice Sweeting

  1. Anonymity:

    (a) Under the Court’s inherent jurisdiction and pursuant to s. 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998:

    (i) the Claimant’s name is to be withheld from the public and must not be disclosed in any proceedings in public; and

    (ii) the Claimant is to be referred to orally and in writing as “NL”.

    (b) Pursuant to s. 11 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981, there must be no publication of the identity of the Claimant or of any matter likely to lead to the identification of the Claimant in any report of, or otherwise in connection with, these proceedings.

    (c) Pursuant to CPR5.4C(4):

    (i) the parties must within 7 days file and serve a redacted copy of any statement of case already filed, omitting the name, address and any other information likely to lead to the identification of the Claimant;

    (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 and must then be served with the unredacted version;

    (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

  2. Rolled Up Hearing

    a. The application for permission to apply for judicial review is adjourned to be listed in court as a “rolled-up hearing”, on notice to the Defendant as soon as possible after 22 November 2024. If permission to apply for judicial review is granted at that hearing, the Court will proceed immediately to determine the substantive
    claim.

    b. The application is to be listed for half a day;

    c. The parties are to provide a written estimate within 7 days of service of this order if they disagree with that estimate

  3. Case Management Directions

    a) This case is suitable for urgent consideration, and the following timetable will apply.

    b) The defendant shall file and serve its Acknowledgment of Service within 5 days of the claimant serving the sealed claim form;

    c) The claimant will file and serve their skeleton argument within 10 days of the claimant serving the sealed claim form;

    d) The defendant will file and serve their skeleton argument/detailed grounds for contesting the claim, and any written evidence that is to be relied on within 15 days of the claimant serving the sealed claim form;

    e) The claimant and defendant will agree the contents of the hearing bundle and the claimant will file and serve the hearing bundle within 20 days of the claimant serving the sealed claim form. An electronic version of the bundle shall be prepared and lodged in accordance with the Guidance on the Administrative Court website. The parties shall, if requested by the Court lodge 2 hard-copy versions of the hearing bundle.

    f) The Claimant must, within 7 days of the date of service of this Order, file an undertaking to pay the continuation fee (see below) if permission to apply for Judicial Review is granted.

    g) The parties shall agree the contents of a bundle containing the authorities to be referred to at the hearing. An electronic version of the bundle shall be prepared in accordance with the Guidance on the Administrative Court website. The parties shall if requested by the Court, prepare a hard-copy version of the authorities bundle. The electronic version of the bundle and if requested, the hard copy version of the bundle, shall be lodged with the Court not less than 3 days before the date of the hearing of the judicial review.

    h) CPR 2.11 shall not apply to these proceedings.

  4. Observations

    a. In considering whether to make an order restricting publication of the identity of the claimant I bear in mind the importance of the open justice principle but consider that this case engages the exceptions to that principle in CPR 39.2.

    b. The claim is urgent for the reasons given in the grounds