Alex Line successfully represents the Secretary of State for Justice in ‘closed to open’ prison conditions judicial review claim

In R (Williams) v Secretary of State for Justice [2024] EWHC 2144 (Admin) Alex Line, instructed by the Government Legal Department, successfully represented the Defendant before Hugh Mercer KC (sitting as a Deputy Judge of the High Court), who dismissed the claim.

The Claimant is serving an indeterminate prison sentence having been found guilty of serious sexual offences against children. The case concerned a decision of the Parole Board, who recommended that he be released from closed to open prison conditions. The final decision on this issue is reserved to the Secretary of State for Justice, who declined to follow the Parole Board’s recommendation, and determined that Claimant should remain in closed conditions due to risk that he would abscond. The Claimant sought to judicially review this decision and obtained permission to do so.

On a full hearing of the merits of the claim, the High Court rejected the claim. Accepting Alex’s submissions, the court summarised some of the key authorities and held that risk of abscond was an area of predictive assessment in relation to which the Secretary of State for Justice holds her own expertise, and on the facts of this case she was entitled to reach a different view from that of the Parole Board, whose decision did not command any presumptive priority on the issue, and therefore a high standard of reasoning for departing from the Parole Board’s view was not required.

In the last couple of years this has been a highly litigated issue. There having been several cases dealing with it at High Court level. Two of these cases are due to be heard by the Court of Appeal later this year, therefore this represents a timely and important outcome for the Secretary of State.

The decision can be found here.

Find out more

Alex Line specialises in the areas of employment and education law. He has extensive employment and discrimination law experience, having practised in these areas throughout his career at the Bar. He has a broad range of experience in education law matters, with particular expertise in the law relating to special educational needs. He is also well placed to assist with public law cases affecting these and associated areas.

To find out more about Alex, contact Paul Barton on +44 (0)207 427 4907 or Chris Rowe on +44 (0)207 427 4911

News 16 Aug, 2024