Judicial Review Flashcards
Judicial Review
The way in which the courts control the exercise of a government’s power
4 Objectives of Judicial Review
(i) Correct interpretation of parliamentary acts.
(ii) Lawful exercise of discretion granted by acts.
(iii) Decision maker acted lawfully.
(iv) Human rights are not violated.
2 requirements necessary for JR to proceed:
(i) A prima facie case
(ii) Locus Standi
Prima Facie
Essentially must prove that the case is arguable.
The case must be, “real as opposed to a theoretical possibility”.
R v Secretary of State for Home Department.
Is prima facie required in cases showing an abuse of power?
Not necessarily,
R v Kissane
Locus standi
The applicant must have sufficient interest in the disputed matter.
Cases lacking Locus Standi
R v Inland Revenue Commissioners
R v Inland Revenue Commissioners
Federation members did not benefit from challenging inland revenue’s tax impositions on casual workers.
Pressure groups and Locus Standi:
Must be an internationally recognised organisation, with access to resources and expertise. They must have an “effective way to bring an issue before the court”.
R v Inspectorate of Pollution (Greenpeace)
Time limit for JR
No later than 3 months after grounds for claim first arose.
Civil Procedure Rule 54.5 (1)
Grounds for JR
(i) Illegality
(ii) Irrationality
(iii) Procedural Impropriety
Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister for the Civil Service (GCHQ)
Illegality
Decision maker must comprehend that the law regulates his authority.
Irrationality
A decision so outrageous in its defiance of logic or accepted standards that no sensible person (who applied the same question) would have reached it.
Associated Provincial Picture House v Wednesbury Corporation
Procedural Impropriety
Failure by an administrative tribunal to observe the basic rules of natural justice.
Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister for the Civil Service (GCHQ)
