January 8, 2024

SK -v- London Borough of Lambeth (anonymity order)

Administrative Court High Court King's Bench Division Anonymity Order

Claim number: AC-2023-LON-003303

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

3 January 2024

Before:

Mr Alan Bates sitting as a Deputy Judge of the High Court

Between:

The King on the application of
SK

-v-

London Borough of Lambeth

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 (but not any documents filed by the Defendant, the Defendant having failed to file an Acknowledgement of Service)

ORDER by Mr Alan Bates sitting as a Deputy Judge of the High Court

Anonymity order / Reporting restrictions

1. In exercise of the Court’s power under CPR Rule 39.2, and having regard to the Human Rights Act 1998 (including, in particular, Articles 8 and 10 of the Convention Rights):

a. The Claimant shall have anonymity in these proceedings unless and until the Court orders otherwise. He shall be referred to in these proceedings (including in the title of this action henceforth) as “SK”.
b. There is to be no reporting of the Claimant’s name, the Claimant’s address, or any still or moving image of the Claimant, in a way that links him to these proceedings, without the Court’s prior permission.
c. Statements of case and skeleton arguments filed in these proceedings after the date of this order shall refer to the Claimant using the anonymising moniker assigned to him in this paragraph of this Order, and shall not include: (a) the Claimant’s name or address; (b) the name of any child, spouse, partner or other family member of the Claimant; (c) the name of any school attended by any child or other member of the Claimant’s family; or (d) the name or address of the Claimant’s place of employment.
d. Pursuant to CPR 5.4C any non-party who applies for a copy of any document in these proceedings from the court records may be provided with such documents only if they are versions that have been anonymised and redacted so that they do not contain any of: (a) the Claimant’s name or address; (b) the name of any child, spouse, partner or other family member of the Claimant; (c) the name of any school attended by any child or other member of the Claimant’s family; or (d) the name or address of the Claimant’s place of employment.

2. Liberty to any person to apply on notice to the parties to vary or discharge paragraph 1 of this Order.

Permission for the Claimant to rely on his witness statement drafted in English

3. The Claimant is permitted to adduce and rely upon his witness statement dated 3 November 2023 notwithstanding that it is, and was drafted, in the English language (which is not the Claimant’s first language).

Decision on permission to apply for judicial review

4. The application for permission to apply for judicial review is granted. That application raises a single ground of challenge, namely that the Defendant has failed to lawfully assess and/or review the Claimant’s housing needs.

Substantive hearing – Expedition and listing

5. The hearing of the claim is expedited and shall be listed for hearing on a date between Wednesday 22nd January 2024 and 1 March 2024 or as soon thereafter as the court can accommodate the hearing, with a time estimate of 1 day. If the parties disagree with this time estimate they shall provide a written time estimate within 7 days of service of this order.

6. Case to be managed and heard in London.

Observations

1. Based on the documents filed by the Claimant, and in the absence of any response from the Defendant, it appears arguable that the Defendant is continuing to fail to assess and/or review the Claimant’s housing needs and that this is a breach of the Defendant’s duties under section 189A(9) Housing Act 1996.

2. The Court expresses its disappointment that the Defendant has not filed an Acknowledgment of Service. The Court may consider the Defendant’s litigation conduct (including pre-action conduct) when taking decisions about costs in due course.

3. In view of the ongoing practical impact on the Claimant and his family members living with him of their potentially not receiving suitable housing, it is appropriate for a degree of expedition to be ordered.

4. I have ordered that the Claimant be anonymised and that there be reporting restrictions to prevent publication of information that could lead to the Claimant and/or his family members being identified. This is appropriate and proportionate to protect the privacy of the Claimant and his family, given the safety risks to them (and potentially to wider family members still in Afghanistan) and also given the sensitive evidence regarding the Claimant’s medical circumstances which is likely to figure significantly in the Court’s consideration of the claim.

5. I have granted permission for the Claimant to rely upon his witness statement dated 3 November 2023, notwithstanding that it is drafted in English (which is not his first language). I have done so based on the facts set out in the witness statement of his solicitor, Ms Claire Wiles, dated 6 November 2023. In my judgment, English is the Claimant’s “own language”, within the meaning of PD 32, para 18.1, even though English is not his first language: Afzal -v- UK Insurance Ltd [2023] EWHC 1730 (KB). In any event, in all the circumstances, it is just and reasonable to permit him to rely on the witness statement.

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 21 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 Claimant to serve evidence in reply shall be filed and served within 6 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 7 days 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 7 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 4 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.