20-03-2026

Case Name	Facts	Case Type	Outcome
A v Home Secretary (Belmarsh Case)	Foreign terror suspects were held in prison indefinitely without a trial. The denial of trial was not incompatible with the Human Rights Act, the legislation was not impartial. %%Replaced the … system, with control orders.%%	Human Rights	The court ruled the detention was discriminatory and against human rights. A declaration of incompatibility was issued. The government had to change the law.
Net Zero Case / Rosebank & Jackdaw	The government approved new oil and gas fields in the North Sea. Similar to Heathrow 3^rd runway. *The judges are not stopping people from building things, they are only upholding the procedures of law.*	Judicial Review	The court ruled the approvals were unlawful. The government failed to check the impact of burning the oil, not just digging it up. Approvals were cancelled.
Prisoners’ Votes (Hirst v UK)	A prisoner (Hirst) challenged the UK’s total ban on all prisoners voting in elections. Considers the Representation of the People Act 1986. Hirst’s history record was not clean. Hirst had previously plead guilty to manslaughter. However, his ability to vote was taken away over a non-violent crime.	Human Rights	The European Court ruled the “blanket ban” was a breach of human rights. The court said the law was too broad and arbitrary. The UK government has mostly refused to change this law. The court issued a declaration of incompatibility. Parliament derogated. This case shows that Parliament is more powerful than the courts, hence Parliamentary Sovereignty.
UK v Miller (1^st and 2^nd)	Miller 1 involved the Government trying to start Brexit (invoking EU Article 50) without asking Parliament first. Miller 2 involved the Prime Minister (Boris Johnson) suspending Parliament for five weeks.	Judicial Review	Miller 1 The Supreme Court ruled that the Government (Prime Minister) cannot use “royal prerogative” powers to trigger Article 50 because Brexit would change UK laws and remove individual rights, Parliament had to vote on it first. This forced Parliament to pass a new law (the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Act 2017) before starting the exit process. This case considered that Parliament had brought the UK into the EU via an act, and that the Prime Minister was attempting to reverse this. This case determined that Parliament had to take the UK out of the EU. This is similar to Miller 2 since it is also considering limiting the power of the Prime Minister. Miller 2 The Supreme Court ruled the suspension was unlawful and “void.” It was decided that the Prime Minister cannot stop Parliament from doing its job. Parliament was allowed to meet again immediately. This case proves that the courts can limit the power of the Prime Minister and decides the meaning of the constitution means.
Heathrow 3^rd Runway	Environmental groups challenged the government’s approval of a new runway. The Paris climate treaty was brought into UK law. The main obligation was to behave in a way so that climate change does not increase by 2°. This treaty means that all developments cannot do something that will breach this. Heathrow did not produce an environment assessment as required by the treaty since the Heathrow 3^rd runway would likely breach this.	Judicial Review	The Supreme Court ruled the government did act lawfully. The court said the government followed the correct process in its approval. The project was allowed to go ahead. The court required Heathrow to make an assessment which states that the 3^rd runway would be compatible - stated that Heathrow needs to follow the procedures as outlined in law.

Note

Judicial reviews can only enforce the rule of law.

graph TD
    JR((Judicial Review))
    
    %% Standard Judicial Review Branch
    JR --> Standard[Standard Judicial Review]
    Standard --> Procedural[Focus: Procedural Propriety]
    Standard --> UltraVires[Check: Did the body act 'Ultra Vires'?<br/>Beyond its power]
    Standard --> CasesS[Key Examples]
    CasesS --- Miller[Miller 1 & 2: Limits PM's power]
    CasesS --- Heathrow[Heathrow 3rd Runway: Followed process]
    CasesS --- NetZero[Rosebank/Jackdaw: Failed to assess impact]

    %% Human Rights Branch
    JR --> HRJR[Human Rights Judicial Review]
    HRJR --> HRA[Based on Human Rights Act 1998]
    HRJR --> Compatibility[Check: Is the law compatible with the ECHR?]
    HRJR --> Remedy[Remedy: Declaration of Incompatibility]
    HRJR --> CasesH[Key Examples]
    CasesH --- Belmarsh[Belmarsh Case: Indefinite detention]
    CasesH --- Hirst[Hirst v UK: Prisoner voting ban]

    %% Limitations/Sovereignty
    JR --> PS[Parliamentary Sovereignty]
    PS --- Limit1[Courts cannot strike down Acts of Parliament]
    PS --- Limit2[Courts only enforce the 'Procedure of Law']