Home / Resources / Court of Appeal clarifies the law as to when the Secretary of State for Justice can depart from Parole Board recommendations.

Court of Appeal clarifies the law as to when the Secretary of State for Justice can depart from Parole Board recommendations.

28/10/2024

In a judgment handed down on 28 October 2024, the Court of Appeal (Baroness Carr LCJ, Dame Victoria Sharp P and William Davis LJ) allowed the Secretary of State for Justice’s appeal, and in doing so clarified the approach to be taken when decisions of the Secretary of State declining to accept Parole Board recommendations were challenged by way of judicial review.  

The Secretary of State had declined to follow the Parole Board’s recommendation to transfer Mr Sneddon to open conditions. Mr Sneddon successfully challenged that decision before the High Court, arguing that the Secretary of State had not provided “very good reasons” for departing from the Parol Board’s recommendation in circumstances in which the Parole Board was said to have held an advantage over the Secretary of State.  

In allowing the appeal, the Court of Appeal stressed that the decision was one for the Secretary of State, not the Parole Board. Whilst the Secretary of State must have regard to the recommendation, it was a matter for them how much weight they attached to such advice. They were not bound to follow the advice, nor was it incumbent upon the Secretary of State to first identify an error or deficiency in the Parole Board’s decision. The sole requirement was for the Secretary of State to reach a decision that was reasonable and rational in the circumstances.

Myles Grandison and Tom Leary, led by Sir James Eadie KC Blackstone Chambers) were instructed by the Secretary of State.
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