Public Law
Since its foundation, the Firm has regularly been involved in challenging the decisions of various Governmental bodies by way of taking judicial review proceedings before the High Court.
Those challenged include local councils, the Home Office, the Department of Health, the Legal Aid board/Legal Services Commission, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority and CAFCASS.
We consider this a crucial area of the firm's work in representing clients which extends across all our specialist areas of practice.
If it can be established that a decision is unlawful, of itself, or has been reached unlawfully, then it is challengable by any individual or organisation adversely effected by it.
Unlawfulness, in this context, may mean that the body making the decision did so without legal authority or has acted unreasonably to the point where the Court views it as invalid.
In recent years, decisions are susceptible to review under the Human Rights Act.
In 2006 we were instructed by Josie Russell who was seriously injured in a vicious attack by Michael Stone in which her mother and sister were also attacked and died. She is contesting a case brought by Stone to prevent a report on his violent background being made public. Josie believes it should be published so that lesson can be learned from any failures in the mental health services to detain Stone before he committed the murders. The case was successfully concluded in June 2006 and the report was published.