Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022

2 Exclusion of review of Upper Tribunal’s permission-to-appeal decisions

(1) In the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, after section 11 insert—

“11A Finality of decisions by Upper Tribunal about permission to appeal

(1) Subsections (2) and (3) apply in relation to a decision by the Upper Tribunal to refuse permission (or leave) to appeal further to an application under section 11(4)(b).

(2) The decision is final, and not liable to be questioned or set aside in any other court.

(3) In particular—

(a) the Upper Tribunal is not to be regarded as having exceeded its powers by reason of any error made in reaching the decision;

(b) the supervisory jurisdiction does not extend to, and no application or petition for judicial review may be made or brought in relation to, the decision.

(4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply so far as the decision involves or gives rise to any question as to whether—

(a) the Upper Tribunal has or had a valid application before it under section 11(4)(b),

(b) the Upper Tribunal is or was properly constituted for the purpose of dealing with the application, or

(c) the Upper Tribunal is acting or has acted—

(i) in bad faith, or

(ii) in such a procedurally defective way as amounts to a fundamental breach of the principles of natural justice.

(5) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply so far as provision giving the First-tier Tribunal jurisdiction to make the first-instance decision could (if the Tribunal did not already have that jurisdiction) be made by—

(a) an Act of the Scottish Parliament, or

(b) an Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly the Bill for which would not require the consent of the Secretary of State.

(6) The court of supervisory jurisdiction is not to entertain any application or petition for judicial review in respect of a decision of the First-tier Tribunal that it would not entertain (whether as a matter of law or discretion) in the absence of this section.

(7) In this section—

• “decision” includes any purported decision;

• “first-instance decision” means the decision in relation to which permission (or leave) to appeal is being sought under section 11(4)(b);

• “the supervisory jurisdiction” means the supervisory jurisdiction of—

  (a)

  the High Court, in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, or

  (b)

  the Court of Session, in Scotland,

  and “the court of supervisory jurisdiction” is to be read accordingly.”

(2) The amendment made by subsection (1) does not apply in relation to a decision (including any purported decision) of the Upper Tribunal made before the day on which this section comes into force.