Saxena, R (on the application of) v Legal Services Commission

Permission to appeal may be refused where the underlying application has no realistic prospect of success. An adjournment requires sufficiently reliable and relevant supporting material. A vague letter and an airline ticket, without proper medical evidence or adequate details, will not normally justify removing the matter from the list, particularly where the applicant declines an immediate opportunity to explain the position.

Dr Saxena sought permission to appeal against the dismissal by Jackson J on 8 February 2002 of his application for judicial review of the Legal Services Commission’s refusal of legal aid for two sets of proceedings.

He did not attend the Court of Appeal hearing. He sought an adjournment, relying on a letter from India referring to a proposed heart operation and later producing an airline ticket. The central issues were whether the hearing should be adjourned and whether the proposed appeal had any prospect of success.

1. Application refused. The application was hopeless. The dismissal below was based on the conclusion that there was no prospect of success, for reasons which the Court of Appeal regarded as fully and clearly set out by Jackson J and with which Lord Justice Latham entirely agreed.
2. An adjournment was not justified on the material provided. The supporting letter gave no adequate details of the applicant’s medical situation or the relevant background. A proper medical report was required before the court could properly consider postponing the hearing.
3. The applicant attended the Court of Appeal Office and was offered an immediate opportunity to appear before the judge and explain his position, but declined it. He later sent an airline ticket showing that he had left the country for India. That material did not supply the information needed to support the adjournment application.
4. The court therefore declined to take the case out of the list and refused the application.

• Court of Appeal (Civil Division): Lord Justice Latham refused the application for permission to appeal and ordered that the application be refused.
• High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, Administrative Court: Jackson J dismissed the application for judicial review on 8 February 2002, concluding that there was no prospect of success.