AC-2024-LON-000883 - [2025] EWHC 2019 (Admin)

Sections 5 and 6A of the Act empower the Lord Chancellor to make rules of procedure for the exercise of SIAC’s appellate and review jurisdictions. Section 5 grants rule-making powers in relation to the appellate jurisdiction and provides (in so far as relevant):

“(1)

The Lord Chancellor may make rules—

(a)

for regulating the exercise of the rights of appeal conferred by section 2 or 2B above

… and

(c)

for other matters preliminary or incidental to or arising out of such appeals, including proof of the decisions of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.

…

(2A)   Rules under this section may, in particular, do anything which may be done by Tribunal Procedure Rules.

(3)

Rules under this section may, in particular—

(a)

make provision enabling proceedings before the Commission to take place without the appellant being given full particulars of the reasons for the decision which is the subject of the appeal,

(b)

make provision enabling the Commission to hold proceedings in the absence of any person, including the appellant and any legal representative appointed by him,

…

(4)

Rules under this section may also include provision—

…

(b)

conferring on the Commission such ancillary powers as the Lord Chancellor thinks necessary for the purposes of the exercise of its functions.

…

(6)

In making rules under this section the Lord Chancellor shall have regard, in particular, to—

(a)

the need to secure that decisions which are the subject of appeals are properly reviewed, and

(b)

the need to secure that information is not disclosed contrary to the public interest” (emphasis added).

By virtue of section 6A, section 5 applies, and must be read in such a way that it applies, to reviews under sections 2C-2F. By this legislative mechanism, the Lord Chancellor may make rules that govern not only the procedure for the determination of reviews (section 5(1)(a)) but also mattersthat are incidental to or arise out of reviews (section 5(1)(c)) and other ancillary powers in reviews (section 5(4)(b)).

The present rules are the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (Procedure) Rules 2003 as amended (“the Rules”). Rule 11A provides:

“11A Withdrawal of appeal or application for review

(1)

An appellant may withdraw an appeal or application for review—

(a)

orally, at a hearing; or

(b)

at any time, by filing written notice with the Commission.

(2)

An appeal or an application for review shall be treated as withdrawn if the Secretary of State notifies the Commission that the decision to which the appeal or application for review relates has been withdrawn.

(3)

If an appeal or application for review is withdrawn or treated as withdrawn, the Commission must serve on the parties and on any special advocate a notice that the appeal or application for review has been recorded as having been withdrawn.”

Against this legal background, we turn to the facts.