½Û×ÓÊÓƵ

Judicial review is the procedure whereby the court considers whether the decision of a public body is lawful¹. In tax cases, it is necessary to make an application for judicial review where there is no statutory right of appeal against HMRC's decision or where the case involves matters of public law over which the First-tier Tribunal has no jurisdiction.

For an overview of judicial review, see A5.701.

Normally, judicial review claims are heard by the High Court, however, the Upper Tribunal also has the jurisdiction to hear some claims for judicial review². See A5.701A.

The established grounds for judicial review are:

1. Ìý

   •ÌýÌýÌýÌý procedural impropriety (see A5.702)

2. Ìý

   •ÌýÌýÌýÌý illegality (see A5.702)

3. Ìý

   •ÌýÌýÌýÌý irrationality (see A5.702)

4. Ìý

   •ÌýÌýÌýÌý legitimate expectation (see below)

Until 2023³, it had been understood in tax cases that substantive (as opposed to procedural) unfairness, sometimes characterised as abuse of power, was a ground for judicial review. However, this is incorrect – it was held by the Supreme Court in Gallaher⁴