Supreme Court hands down judgments on Closed Material Proceedings in judicial review proceedings

Tom Little QC appeared in Belhaj and Boudchar v DPP and FCO in the Supreme Court which considered whether a decision not to prosecute is “in a criminal cause or matter” for the purposes of the Justice and Security Act 2013. The Supreme Court decided by a majority of 3:2 that public law claims challenging a decision not to prosecute are a criminal matter and therefore there is no vires to hold Closed Material Proceedings. The decision will have significant ramifications in judicial review proceedings of decisions not to prosecute which involve issues of national security.