Confidentiality rings approved in principle for PII cases

18/12/12

Lord Justice Moses today handed down his written reasons for a ruling given in open court on 16 November approving in principle the use of lawyer-only confidentiality rings in cases where public interest immunity was claimed.

The issue arose in R (SM) v Secretary of State for Defence, which involved a challenge to the Defence Secretary's practice of handing over detainees captured in Afghanistan to the Afghan security forces. There was evidence to suggest torture by those forces.

The Defence Secretary claimed public interest immunity in respect of a number of documents. The claimant invited the court to order disclosure of some or all of these documents into a ‘confidentiality ring'. The Defence Secretary argued that this was in principle impermissible, relying on the decisions of the House of Lords in Somerville v Scottish Ministers and of the Supreme Court in Al Rawi v Security Service.

Lord Justice Moses rejected those arguments, holding that there was no objection in principle to disclosure into a lawyer-only confidentiality ring of material subject to a PII claim.

An interim injunction preventing the transfer of detainees was granted on 2 November. The substantive proceedings have now been withdrawn following the Secretary of State's indication that he would cease transfers to the Afghan authorities and would not resume them without giving reasonable notice. The claimant has indicated that other parts of his claim will be pursued in separate private law proceedings.

The judgment is here.

The BBC news report is here.