Graeme Hall secures quashing of judgment “written in water”

On 14 October 2025, Mr Justice MacDonald allowed an application for judicial review of the decision of District Judge Leong sending his client’s extradition case to the Secretary of State. MacDonald J accepted the submission that the judgment was “written in water” owing to procedural unfairness.

The district judge had made adverse findings against the claimant and the clinicians instructed by the claimant in circumstances where, first, the credibility and reliability of those witnesses were not put in issue by the parties; and, secondly, the allegations and material said to justify the adverse findings were not put to the witnesses.

MacDonald J concluded that while the 118 page judgment had been “impressively constructed” he nonetheless had “no doubt” that “the approach taken by the judge was manifestly unfair”, holding that “it is a cardinal element of a fair trial that allegations are put to the person they are made against in order to give that person an opportunity to provide a response”.

In quashing the decision, MacDonald J directed that the case be remitted to another district judge who ought not to consider district judge Leong’s judgment to prevent their consideration from being “infected” by the “nature and extent of the procedural unfairness”.

Graeme Hall was instructed by Micheal McKee of Duncan Lewis Solicitors.