MM (Burma) & Anor v Secretary of State for the Home Department

Where an appellate matter may appropriately be heard with a related appeal, the Court of Appeal may adjourn it for listing before the same court, subject to the relevant parties’ views. An application to amend grounds may likewise be adjourned for consideration at that hearing. The court may direct expedition, subject to judicial and counsel availability. This judgment determined case management only and decided no substantive issue in the appeals.

Two appeals by MM (Burma) and Omar against the Secretary of State for the Home Department came before the Court of Appeal from the High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, Administrative Court, before His Honour Judge Mackie QC. The respondent did not appear and was not represented.

The court considered the future listing of the appeals, including whether the hearing could be linked with Tekle, reported at [2008] EWHC 3064 (Admin). The central matters were case management, expedition and an application to amend the appellants’ grounds of appeal.

This was a procedural case-management order. The court made no determination of the merits of either appeal and gave no substantive ruling on the underlying immigration issues.

1. Adjournment. The matter was adjourned to a further date to be fixed.
2. Potential linked hearing. The court directed that, if possible, the future hearing should be linked with Tekle, reported at [2008] EWHC 3064 (Admin), subject to any objection by the parties to that appeal.
3. Amendment of grounds. The application to amend the appellants’ grounds of appeal was also adjourned, to be dealt with by the same court.
4. Expedition and listing. The court ordered expedition, with the appeal to be heard if possible by the end of the next term, subject to counsel’s availability. The estimated duration for the whole matter was between one and a half and two days.

The formal order was that the application be adjourned.

• Court of Appeal (Civil Division). The court adjourned the appeals and the application to amend the grounds, directed expedition, and contemplated linking the hearing with Tekle, reported at [2008] EWHC 3064 (Admin).
• High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, Administrative Court. The appeals arose from proceedings before His Honour Judge Mackie QC. The judgment does not state the citation or substantive outcome of the decision under appeal.