June 13, 2024

SAG and others -v- Secretary of State for the Home Department (anonymity order)

Administrative Court High Court King's Bench Division Anonymity Order

Claim number: AC-2024-LON-001478

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

13 June 2024

Before:

The Honourable Mr Justice Mould

Between:

(1) SAG
(2) MA
(3) HF
(4) NF

-v-

Secretary of State for the Home Department

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 Claimants and the Acknowledgement of service filed by the Defendant

ORDER by the Honourable Mr Justice Mould

1. Pursuant to CPR Rule 39.2(4) the Claimants’ identities are not to be disclosed.

2. In any publication or broadcast relating to these proceedings, the Claimants shall be known respectively by the letters ‘SAG’, ‘MA’, ‘HF’ and ‘NF’. There shall be no publication in any newspaper or other media or other disclosure of any name, address, image or other information tending to identify the Claimants in relation to their involvement in these proceedings.

3. Pursuant to CPR Rule 5.4C a person who is not a party to the proceedings may obtain a copy of the statement of case, judgment or order from the court records only if a statement of case, judgment or court order has been anonymized such that:
i. The Claimants are referred to in those documents as SAG, MA, HF and NF;
ii. The address of the Claimants has been deleted from those documents;
iii. For the purpose of this claim, including any statement of case, judgment, order or other document, the Claimants shall be known respectively by the letters SAG, MA, HF and NF.

4. In so far as any statement of case, judgment, order or other document to which anyone might have access pursuant to CPR Rule 5.4A – D does not comply with paragraph 3 above, the Claimants’ solicitors have permission to file with the court copies of any such document adjusted so that it does comply. Such copies are to be treated for all purposes as being in substitution for the relevant original; and the originals are then to be retained by the court in a sealed envelope marked “not to be opened without the permission of a judge or master of the King’s Bench Division”.

5. Any interested party, whether or not a party to the proceedings, may apply to the Court to vary or discharge this order, providing that any such application is made on notice to the Claimants’ solicitors and that 7 working days’ prior notice of the intention to make such an application is given. The Court will affect service of the application.

6. A copy of this order shall be published on the Judicial Website of the High Court of Justice specifying that the Claimants shall be referred to respectively as ‘SAG’, ‘MA’, ‘HF’ and ‘NF’.

7. The application for permission to apply for judicial review is granted.

8. The application is to be listed for 2.5 hours; the parties to provide a written time estimate within 7 days of service of this order if they disagree with this direction.

Observations

1. I am satisfied that an anonymity order is necessary in the case to protect the interests of the Claimants who are a family with vulnerable young children. Such an order is justified in the interests of the administration of justice.

2. For the reasons given in the reply, the claim remains arguable and permission is appropriate notwithstanding the decision of the Defendant on 13 May 2024.

3. The case for expedition no longer applies.

Case Management Directions

1. The Defendant and any other person served with the Claim Form who wishes to contest the claim or support it on additional grounds shall, within 35 days of the date of service of this Order, file and serve (a) Detailed Grounds for contesting the claim or supporting it on additional grounds, and (b) any written evidence that is to be relied on. For the avoidance of doubt, a party who has filed and served Summary Grounds pursuant to CPR 54.8 may comply with (a) above by filing and serving a document which states that those Summary Grounds shall stand as the Detailed Grounds required by CPR 54.14.

2. Any application by the Claimants to serve evidence in reply shall be filed and served within 21 days of the date on which the Defendant serves evidence pursuant to 1(b) above.

3. The parties shall agree the contents of the hearing bundle and must file it with the Court not less than 4 weeks before the date of the hearing of the judicial review. 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.

4. The Claimant must file and serve a Skeleton Argument not less than 21 days before the date of the hearing of the judicial review.

5. The Defendant and any Interested Party must file and serve a Skeleton Argument not less than 14 days before the date of the hearing of the judicial review.

6. 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.

7. If permission has been granted on some grounds but refused on others, the Claimant may request that the decision to refuse permission be reconsidered at a hearing by filing and serving a completed Form 86B within 7 days after the date this order is served on the Claimant. The reconsideration hearing will be fixed in due course. However, if all parties agree and time estimates for substantive hearing allow, the reconsideration hearing may take place immediately before the substantive hearing. The Administrative Court Office must be notified within 21 days of the service and filing of Form 86B if the parties agree to this course.