Judicial review is how the courts keep public bodies within the law. When a government department, regulator or local authority makes a decision, those affected can ask a court to check that it was made lawfully and fairly. As a solicitor advising a client — whether challenging a decision or defending one — you need to know exactly which grounds are available, what each one requires, and when a court will step in. The court asks only whether the decision was lawful, not whether it was right; that distinction shapes everything that follows.
This lesson builds your understanding ground by ground:
- Nature of Judicial Review — what review is, how it differs from an appeal, and the three classic heads of challenge.
- Illegality and the Exercise of Discretion — acting within legal powers, proper purposes, and relevant and irrelevant considerations.
- Fettering and Delegating Discretion — rigid policies, unlawful sub-delegation, the Carltona principle, and dictation.
- Irrationality and Proportionality — the Wednesbury test, varying intensity of review, and when proportionality takes over.
- Procedural Impropriety — bias, the right to a fair hearing, reasons, and lawful consultation.
- Legitimate Expectation and Error of Fact — holding bodies to their promises, and challenging factual mistakes.
- Refusal of Relief — the statutory defence that can defeat an otherwise sound claim.