A substantial majority of Special Advocates has felt driven to decline to accept new appointments to the role. This is a result of the Government’s continuing failure to provide proper support for the controversial system for secret evidence and closed proceedings, avoidably heightening the unfairness that is inherent in such cases. Special Advocates are the security-cleared lawyers appointed to represent the interests of those excluded from closed proceedings and they are central to the functioning of the system.
On 15 April 2024 a group of 25 practising Special Advocates, including 16 King’s Counsel, informed the Attorney General (who is also the Advocate General in Northern Ireland) that they had each formed the view that they could not, in good professional conscience, accept any new appointments as Special Advocates whilst current defects in the system remain unaddressed. This group consists of most practising Special Advocates in England and Wales, and Northern Ireland. They highlight the Government’s failure to provide the necessary support for the system to function effectively, including the continuing lack of any response to the recommendations of the Ouseley review published in November 2022 – let alone implementation of those recommendations.
Continue reading @ UKHRB.
I do not share Angus McCullough's fears but would like to see the whole system of CMPs melt down -it wont happen. It has to be remember that Special Advoctes are state appointed and instructed liaison barristers. The Treasury Solicitor’s Department (renamed the Government Legal Department) prepared a secret instructional manual for SAs which requires ‘special vetting’ to have sight of it. The manual is now managed by the Special Advocates Support Office (SASO). The SASO is staffed by a team of government lawyers within the government’s legal department. SAs must follow the instructions in the government’s manual and those given by the government lawyers staffing the SASO.
ReplyDelete