Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Judicial review candour: Administrative Court rejects routine anonymisation of junior civil servants; guidance on redactions and explanations in R (IAB) v SSHD [2023] EWHC 2930 (Admin)

Published on: 19 December 2023

Published by a LexisNexis Public Law expert

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Article summary

R (on the application of IAB and others) v Secretary of State for the Home Department and another [2023] EWHC 2930 (Admin)

What are the practical implications of this case?

This important ruling (which may yet be appealed) appears to mark a shift in the Administrative Court’s approach to when it is acceptable to redact names in materials produced by the defendant on disclosure. It is delivered against a backdrop where, via social media and websites, documents used in litigation routinely become accessible to the public. Moreover, defendants at times feel compelled to carry out a comprehensive disclosure exercise (searching for documents) to convince claimants that they have fulfilled their duty of candour. Even so, Mr Justice Swift emphasised that the conduct of litigation should not be driven by fear of the baser instincts of a misguided minority (para [28]), and remarked that open debate about government policy sits far from any real likelihood that civil servants would be harassed (para [29]). The Court provided clear guidance on the treatment of redactions in public law proceedings (para [43]). That guidance concerns the approach to redactions in public law cases, and the handling of disclosure decisions therein. The disclosing party must...

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