Nick McBride appointed to Government review panel

Pembroke Law Fellow Nick McBride (1997) has been appointed by the Government to sit on an independent panel of experts to examine the judicial review process.

A judicial review is a challenge to the way in which a decision has been made by a public body, such as a government department, local council, police force of health authority. It is not really concerned with the conclusions of the process and whether they are 'right' or 'wrong'.

The panel has been asked to consider “whether the right balance is being struck between the rights of citizens to challenge executive decisions, and the need for effective and efficient government”. It has been asked to consider four specific areas:

• Whether the terms of Judicial Review should be written into law
• Whether certain executive decisions should be decided on by judges
• Which grounds and remedies should be available in claims brought against the government
• Any further procedural reforms to Judicial Review, such as timings and the appeal process

The other members of the panel are: Lord Edward Faulks QC, Professor Carol Harlow QC, Vikram Sachdeva QC, Professor Alan Page and Celina Colquhoun.

Nick McBride is a College Lecturer and Director of Studies in Law at Pembroke. He is the author of a number of books, including Letters to a Law Student, a guide to studying law at university. His most recent book, The Humanity of Private Law: Part II: Evaluation, was published by Bloomsbury in April.

Terms of reference for the independent review of administrative law: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5f27d3128fa8f57ac14f693e/independent-review-of-administrative-law-tor.pdf