Human Rights Cases

Members of the Doughty Street Chambers Human Rights Unit continue to be involved in the leading human rights cases in domestic, European and international courts. These cases cover a wide range of practice areas, including crime, discrimination, education, housing and social welfare, immigration, inquests, media, mental health, public law and prison law.

R v Coutts [2006] UKHL 39; [2006] 4 All ER 353 (House of Lords)

Reduction from murder to manslaughter - Facts raising possibility of manslaughter verdict - Judge in murder trial asking counsel whether he should direct jury on manslaughter because evidence had arisen to support such a verdict - Prosecution and defence counsel both declining to invite judge to direct jury on manslaughter - Judge directing jury only on murder - Whether judge having duty to direct jury on obvious alternative offence arising on the evidence irrespective of parties' wishes.

R v Hamza [2006] EWCA Crim 2918 (Court of Appeal)

Murder - Incitement - Whether an offence capable of being committed in respect of soliciting murder outside England and Wales where person solicited not a British national - Offences Against the Person Act 1861, s 4 - Abuse of process - Delay between offences and initiation of proceedings - Events occurring since offence giving rise to adverse publicity - Whether different test to be applied where culpable delay by authorities - Whether real risk of prejudice and therefore defendant having unfair trial.

R (on the application of Stellato) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2006] EWHC 608

Release from prison on licence - Revocation of licence - Coming into force of new statutory sentencing regime - Transitional provisions - Prisoner sentenced in 1998 - Whether prisoner, having been released on licence, could be validly recalled to prison after new regime came into force - Criminal Justice Act 2003, s 254 - Criminal Justice Act 2003 (Commencement No 8 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Order 2005, SI 2005/950, paras 19, 23. Due for House of Lords hearing in February 2007.

Secretary of State for the Home Department v MB [2006] EWCA Civ 1140 (Court of Appeal)

Right to a fair hearing - Secretary of State imposing control order on person for purpose of prevention of terrorism - Court supervision of control order - Whether procedure whereby court reviewing lawfulness of Secretary of State's decision to make order upon basis of material available to him conspicuously unfair and incompatible with right to a fair hearing - Human Rights Act 1998, Sch 1, Pt I, art 6(1) - Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005, ss 3, 11. Currently on appeal to the House of Lords.

Secretary of State for the Home Department v JJ and others [2006] EWCA Civ 1141 (Court of Appeal)

Deprivation of liberty - Secretary of State imposing control orders on respondents for purpose of prevention of terrorism - Court quashing control orders on basis that they amount to deprivation of respondents' liberty - Whether court correct to quash orders - Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005, ss 2, 3(12). Currently on appeal to the House of Lords.

Ashley and another v Chief Constable of Sussex Police [2006] EWCA Civ 1085 (Court of Appeal)

Fatal shooting of unarmed man by police - whether declaration is sufficient reason to continue to trial even if the cost/benefit analysis is against the claimant - Self-defence - Mistake - Whether burden of proof in relation to self-defence on claimant or defendant. Currently on appeal to the House of Lords.

R v G [2006] 1 WLR 2052 (Court of Appeal)

challenge to compatibility of s.5 Sexual Offences Act 2003 with Article 6 - compatibility with Article 8 of the prosecution of 15 year old boy for rape notwithstanding presence of consent and belief that complainant was 15 years old. Leave to appeal to the House of Lords has been granted.

AA v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2006] INLR 401 CA

Whether possibility of safe voluntary return to Zimbabwe would mean that lack of safety of a forced removal could not entitle a person whose asylum claim had otherwise been dismissed to protection under the Refugee Convention.

R (D) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2006] 3 All ER 946 CA; [2005] UKHRR 917

Attempted suicide by a prisoner - duty to carry out an investigation under Article 2 ECHR.

R v Payne and others (19 September 2006)

Court Martial's ability to impose reporting restrictions on photographs of defendants in a war crimes trial.

Bowe and Davis v R [2006] UKPC 10 (Privy Council) Bahamas

Criminal law - Death penalty - Whether imposition of death penalty on conviction of murder is mandatory or discretionary - Penal Code (Bahamas), s 312.

Jones v Minister of Interior Al-Mamlaka Al-Arabiya as Saudiya (the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) and others [2006] UKHL 26 (House of Lords)

Practice and procedure - Costs - Order of Court of Appeal - Undertaking by foreign state not to overturn costs order made against it - Effect of state immunity - State Immunity Act 1978, s 13(2)(b).

R (on the application of Al-Jedda) v Secretary of State for Defence [2006] EWCA Civ 327 (Court of Appeal)

Right to liberty - Claimant detained in Iraq for imperative reasons of security - Whether United Nations Security Council Resolution qualifying claimant's right to liberty - Human Rights Act 1998, Sch 1, art 5 - Charter of the United Nations, art 103.

A and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department (No 2) [2005] UKHL 71; [2006] 2 AC 221 (House of Lords)

Right to fair trial - Secretary of State issuing certificates to detain suspected international terrorists under temporary emergency statutory provisions - Detention on basis of reasonable belief and suspicion - Alleged reliance on evidence of third parties subject to torture in foreign state - Admissibility of evidence - Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 (c 24) ss. 21, 23, 25 - Special Immigration Appeals Commission (Procedure) Rules 2003 (SI 2003/1034), r 44(3) - Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1990) (Cm 1775), art 15.

Behrami v France (71412/01) and Saramati v France, Germany, Norway (78166/01)

NATO responsibility for uncleared cluster bombs in Kosovo - multinational troops operating abroad - alleged negligent failure to defuse unexploded bombs - positive obligation on states to protect life (articles 1 and 2).

Babar Ahmed and Haroon Rashid Aswat v United States of America [2006] EWHC 2927

Extradition request to America to stand trial for various terrorism-related offences - Effect of diplomatic notes offering assurance that the defendants would not be treated as enemy combatants - Potential Violation of European Convention right to a fair trial - Extradition Act 2003 s.87.

Russia v Maruev and Chernysheva (2005) (unreported)

Attempted extradition to Russia of ex-YUKOS employee - prospect of unfair trial in Russia due to political opinion.

Countryside Alliance and others v HM Attorney General and others [2005] EWHC 1677

Constitutional law - Parliament - Legislative power - Hunting - Statute to ban hunting - Whether statute proportionate interference with Convention and Community rights - Hunting Act 2004 - Human Rights Act 1998, Sch 1, Pt 1, arts 8 and 11, First Protocol, art 1 - EC Treaty, arts 28, 49

R (on the application of Al-Skeini and others) v Secretary of State for Defence [2005] EWCA Civ 1609 (Court of Appeal)

Extra-territorial jurisdiction - United Kingdom occupying power in Iraq - Whether convention applying to deaths of Iraqi civilians occurring whilst British troops on patrol - Whether convention applying to death of Iraqi civilian whilst being detained by British troops.

R (on the application of Gertrude Harris) v Secretary of State for Defence

Edward Fitzgerald QC is representing the family of Private Henry Farr, who was executed during the First World War. Private Farr was shot for cowardice, despite having been recently treated for shell shock and suffering from a psychiatric condition. His family lost the benefit of his military pension and were forced to leave their house as a result of his death. Full story available here.

O'Brien v Chief Constable of South Wales [2005] UKHL 26

Heather Williams was junior counsel in this case when it was successfully argued for the first time in a civil action against the police that "similar fact" evidence of police officers' misconduct in other investigations was admissible evidence, rendering it more likely that the claimant, Michael O'Brien, had been maliciously prosecuted, as he alleged. This approach is particularly useful for claimants suing the police for serious malpractice where, unless they can rely on evidence from other investigations, it may be largely their word against that of a number of police officers.

R v Connor, Mirza (2004) 2 WLR 201

This case, taken by Edward Fitzgerald QC, involved the contentious issue of jury secrecy and the powers of the court to investigate allegations of bias in jury deliberations and invoked Article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights (the right to a fair trial). Following this case, the Department of Constitutional Affairs has announced that it would publish a consultation paper to consider whether the Government should allow research to be conducted on jury deliberations and juror impropriety. Edward Fitzgerald is also acting for the applicant before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, and has recently been named Human Rights Silk of the Year by Chambers and Partners.

Attorney General v Scotcher [2005] UKHL 36 [2005] 1 W.L.R. 1867

Keir Starmer QC took this case to the Court of Appeal in an attempt to improve and clarify the law on 'contempt of court' and the revelation of jury deliberations in the event of a miscarriage of justice. This was a much-publicised case where the mother of the accused received a letter from a juror saying that the jury deliberations had been badly conducted.

Austin and Saxby v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2005] HRLR 20

Phillippa Kaufmann took this case concerning the compatibility of Article 5 of the European Convention of Human Rights with the detention of the claimants for over 7 hours in Oxford Circus on Mayday 2001. As the Commissioner accepted, both of the claimants were peaceful demonstrators caught together with many others like them in the absolute cordon imposed by the police around a few thousand demonstrators who gathered there at about 2 p.m. The case raises the question of whether article 5(1)(c) in particular is capable of authorising the detention of individuals whom the police neither suspect of criminality nor intend to bring before a court on reasonable suspicion of having committed an offence or to prevent them doing so.

R. (on the application of Hurst) v HM Coroner for Northern District London [2005] EWCA Civ 890

Keir Starmer QC and Stephen Cragg took this case to the Court of Appeal to decide an extremely important issue; whether or not the Human Rights Act 2000 could be applied retroactively; that is to events taking place before its' introduction. The case concerned the denial of an inquest following the stabbing and death of a young man.

R (A) v SSHD [2005] 2 AC 68

Phillippa Kaufmann (who was recently named Human Rights Junior of the Year by Chambers and Partners) represented Amnesty International which made a successful written intervention in a challenge brought by men detained indefinitely pending deportation on suspicion of international terrorism under the Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001. This legislation was introduced in the aftermath of September 11th and required the UK to derogate from article 5(1)(f) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The detainees challenged the legislation on the grounds that it fell outside the permissible scope of the United Kingdom's derogation and the House of Lords agreed with this because the measures were discriminatory and disproportionate.

Steel & Morris v United Kingdom (68416/01) [2005] E.M.L.R. 15 ("McLibel")

One of the most public cases this year, and one that significantly strengthened free speech in this country was commonly referred to as the 'McLibel' case. Keir Starmer QC and Anthony Hudson, both of Doughty Street Chambers, successfully argued that Articles 6 and 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights require that the state must provide legal aid for individuals sued for libel by large corporations.

Charles Matthews v The State [2004] UKPC 33

Edward Fitzgerald QC is also renowned for his involvement in death penalty work and has appeared before the Privy Council in many death penalty cases. Edward Fitzgerald led this case and successfully appealed against the death sentence imposed on Charles Matthews. This case raised significant questions over the legality of the death penalty in Trinidad and Tobago.

R (Smith) No 2 v Parole Board [2005] 1 WLR 350

Phillippa Kaufmann represented a fixed-term sentence prisoner who was recalled to prison during the course of his licence sought an oral hearing before the parole board to determine whether he had been properly recalled. Like almost every other fixed-term prisoner's case the Parole Board proceeded without an oral hearing. The House of Lords held that there had been a violation of Article 5(4) (of the European Convention on Human Rights) and his rights at common law to a fair hearing. Their Lordships did not hold that an oral hearing would be required in every fixed-term prisoner recall case, but in very many more than the Parole Board had hitherto granted.

R v Parole Board exp West (conjoined appeals) [2005] UKHL 1

Edward Fitzgerald QC successfully advocated the right to an oral hearing following the recall of a prisoner previously released on licence. This judgement has had a significant impact on the rights of prisoners to put forward their own case when facing recall to prison and it was recognised by the House of Lords that denying a prisoner this opportunity is contrary to the requirements of fairness.

Adegun v Oyedemi-Babs

Heather Williams acted for the claimant who recovered substantial damages at Central London County Court (HHJ Dean QC, 6 June 2005) for assault, harassment and breach of contract from her former employers, who held her in conditions of domestic slavery after bringing her to the UK from Nigeria as a young girl without adults to protect her.

Joseph v Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police

Heard at Central London County Court in May 2005, this is one of the first claims of race discrimination brought under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act relating to the way that police dealt with a victim of crime, to proceed to a full trial. Heather Williams acted for the claimant, albeit unsuccessfully. At present there is an outstanding application for permission to appeal.