RF and the Official Solicitor (interested part) -v- Newport City Council (anonymity order)

High CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Claim Number: QB-2021-002140

In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division

12 September 2022

Before:
Master Eastman

Between:
RF
(a child by his Litigation Friend, the Official Solicitor)
-v-
Newport City Council

Anonymity Order

BEFORE Master Eastman sitting at the Royal Courts of Justice on 12 September 2022 via Microsoft Teams.

AND UPON hearing counsel for the Claimant and solicitor for the Defendant,

AND IN consideration of the Claimant’s Article 8 rights to respect for private life and upon it appearing that non-disclosure of the identity of the Claimant is necessary in order to protect the interests of the Claimant, and pursuant to 39.2(4) of the Civil Procedure Rules and section II of the Contempt of Court Act 1981 and rule 5.4C and 5.4D of the Civil Procedure Rules,

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

  1. The identity of the Claimant shall not be disclosed.
  2. The Claimant shall be described in all statements of case and other documents to be filed or served in the proceedings and in any judgment or order in the proceedings and in any report of the proceedings by the press or otherwise as “RF”.
  3. Pursuant to CPR rule 39.2(4) save for the purposes of medical treatment there shall not be disclosed in any report of the proceedings the name of address of the Claimant or of the Claimant’s family or any details leading to the identification of the Claimant and the Claimant, if referred to, shall only be referred to as “RF”.
  4. In so far as necessary, any statement of case or other document disclosing the Claimant’s name or address already filed in the proceedings be replaced by a document describing such name or address in anonymised form as above.
  5. The original of any such document disclosing the name or address of the Claimant be placed on the Court file in a sealed envelope marked “not to be opened without the permission of the Judge”.
  6. A non-party may not inspect of obtain a copy of any document on or from the Court file (other than this order duly anonymised as directed) without the permission of a Judge. Any application for such permission must be made on notice to the Claimant, and the Court will affect service. The file is to be retained by the Court and mark “Anonymised”.
  7. Reporting restrictions apply as to the disclosing of any information that may lead to the subsequent identification of the Claimant. The publication of the name and address of the Claimant or of any member of the Claimant’s immediate family is prohibited.
  8. A (duly anonymised) copy of this Order shall be published on the judicial website of the High Court of Justice specifying that the Claimant as “RF”.
  9. Any non-party affected by this Order may apply on notice to all parties to have this Order set aside or varied.
  10. The provisions of this Order shall not apply: –

(i) To communicate between the Court Funds Office and the anonymised party or Litigation Friend in relation to the payment of money int the Court Funds Office for such benefit of the anonymised party or the investment of treatment of payment out of such money;
(ii) To communications between the Court Funds Office and/or the anonymised party or Litigation Friend and any financial institutions concerned as to the receipt or investment of such money; or
(iii) To records kept by the Court Funds Office or the anonymised party or Litigation Friend or any such financial institution in relation to such money.