Procedural Requirements

• What are the procedural requirements for judicial review?

  • Permission
  • Standing
  • Public function test
  • Time limit
• What is the public function test?

  • The body against which the action is brought must be exercising "public functions"
  • E.g., is it a public body, or is it exercising public functions?
  • E.g., the decisions of ministers, police, government departments and etc.
  • Bodies set up by statute to perform public functions may also be judicially reviewed
• What is the test for public function and where does it come from?

  • R v Panel of Takeovers and Mergers, ex p Datafin PLC 1987
  • A private panel regulated the London stock exchange and administered a code of practice
  • Held to be exercising a public function
  • Regulation of the stock exchange that affected citizen's rights
• Permission

  • If permission is refused, a claimant can ask for an oral hearing
  • Governed by the Civil Procedural Rules Part 54
• What is standing?

  • Claimants must show that they have a sufficient interest in the matters at stake
  • Lord Scarman - There must be some logical connection between the claim and claimant
  • Section 31 Senior Courts Act 1981 - "The applicant has sufficient interest in the matter..."
• What are the three types of standing?

  • Conventional - One is directly affected
  • Associate - A group brings an application on the behalf of someone
  • Public interest - There's an absence of another challenger and the group claiming standing has expert character
• What is the sufficient interest test?

  • During the application, persons with no interest whatsoever are excluded
  • 3 factors are considering during hearing - the nature of the applicant, the extent of their interest in the issue, and the remedy sought
• What does the sufficient interest test allow for?

  • For non-governmental organisations with relevant experience and expertise to bring proceedings where there is no other suitable applicant
  • Interest groups and public-spirited individuals can be granted stanidng
• What are ouster clauses?

  • Sections of statutes which state decisions of public bodies cannot be reviewed by the courts
  • Ineffective against errors in law
  • Restricts availability of judicial review
• What were the facts of R v Inspectorate of Pollution ex parte Greenpeace (No 2) [1994] 


  Greenpeace challenged a decision by the Inspectorate of Pollution to grant application by British Nuclear Fuels to modify existing authorisations for the discharge of nuclear waste to conduct testing
• Were Greenpeace granted standing?

  Yes because it was a well-known NGO acting in good faith and with relevant and broad experience and expertise to bring proceedings, and there was no other suitable claimant
• What is procedural exclusivity?

  Review of public law decisions must be brought only though judicial review in the Administrative Court using the procedure in CPR 54
• What is the time limit for bringing a case?

  • The claim form must be filled promptly and no later than 3 months
  • If it involves a decision made by the Secretary of State or a local planning authority, it's six weeks