News

Duncan Lewis Solicitors has successfully secured £34,000 in damages for a client who was unlawfully detained by the Home Office for 6 ½ months, from 13 September 2022 to 28 March 2023. The detention was unlawful as removal was not possible within a reasonable timeframe.

During the period of detention, the client, who suffered from significant health problems, received inadequate medical care. Very little had been done to ensure that the client had appropriate access to the medical treatment needed.

The client was only released after judicial review proceedings were initiated seeking interim relief. The Home Office released the client just before the interim relief hearing was due to be held. Given that at no stage was removal reasonably imminent, the Home Office’s detention of our client throughout was unlawful.

Remarkably, the Home Office admitted the full claim at the outset of the proceedings, a rare occurrence in such cases. The claim was initially brought before the High Court (King’s Bench Division) but was later transferred to the County Court to determine the damages.

Before the case proceeded to trial, our team successfully negotiated a settlement with the Home Office, securing £34,000 in damages for the client.

The client was expertly represented by Halima Begum, a solicitor in the Immigration Department, under the supervision of Director Gemma Lynch. The legal team also included Counsel Sandra Akinbolu and David Ball from the 36 Group.

Halima Begum is a solicitor and supervisor in the Immigration department at Duncan Lewis Solicitors. She specialises in advising and representing clients on various immigration applications, including family and private life, human rights, long residence, and nationality. Halima’s practice includes representing asylum seekers, victims of human trafficking and modern slavery, and individuals with severe mental health conditions.

Duncan Lewis has the leading public law and immigration practice in the UK. The team frequently takes on and successfully brings challenges in some of the most high profile cases in the UK, including in relation to the Rwanda plan and Manston House. The team has a broad practice representing both privately and publicly funded (legal aid) clients in matters involving immigration; asylum and human rights and deportation matters, with a niche practice in immigration and civil liberties claimant judicial review matters. They have significant practice in challenging delays in Home Office decision making, unlawful immigration detention cases with high net claims for damages and challenging immigration removal decisions.