Judicial Review

The Judicial Review Pre-Action Protocol is the formal letter-before-claim procedure that the Administrative Court expects you to follow before issuing proceedings. You send a Letter Before Claim setting out the decision challenged, the legal grounds, the remedies sought, and any information required, and the public body is normally given 14 days to respond. The court can refuse permission, or penalise a party in costs, for failing to follow it without good reason. There are limited exceptions for urgent cases.

Once a claim form is filed, a single High Court judge considers, usually on the papers, whether to grant permission. The legal test is whether the claim is arguable; the threshold is intentionally modest, but truly weak claims are filtered out at this stage. If permission is refused on the papers, you can request renewal at an oral hearing, and an appeal lies (with permission) to the Court of Appeal. Many claims settle once permission is granted.

Yes. CPR 54.5 requires the claim form to be filed promptly and in any event within three months of the grounds for the claim first arising. “Promptly” can mean less than three months if the case is urgent. For planning decisions the limit is shortened to six weeks, and for procurement decisions to 30 days. Extensions are difficult to obtain and you should consult a solicitor as soon as you become aware of the decision.

Section 31(3) of the Senior Courts Act 1981 requires that a claimant have a “sufficient interest” in the matter. In most cases this is straightforward where the decision affects you directly. The courts have also recognised that public interest claimants (charities, NGOs, campaigning bodies) may have standing where the decision raises wider issues and no one else is well placed to litigate, although the court will scrutinise the claimant’s expertise and motivation.

The principal remedies are: a quashing order (setting aside the unlawful decision); a mandatory order (compelling the public body to do its duty); a prohibiting order (restraining unlawful action); a declaration as to the legal position; and an injunction. Damages are not a stand-alone remedy in judicial review but may be awarded where another cause of action (e.g. under the Human Rights Act 1998) is made out. All remedies are discretionary.

Costs are case-specific but the headline risks are court fees, your own solicitor and counsel fees, and an adverse costs order if you lose. In environmental and Aarhus Convention cases costs caps apply. Costs capping orders (formerly called protective costs orders) can also be sought in cases of significant public importance. Legal aid is available in some areas, subject to means and merits. Take cost-risk advice at the Letter Before Claim stage.