The High Court has rejected a judicial review challenge to the Minister for Justice’s refusal to revoke a deportation order against an Albanian man, but granted an eight-week injunction preventing his deportation while a further application is prepared.
The applicants were A.N., his Irish-citizen wife M.C. and her son C.C., also an Irish citizen. The judgment does not identify them by name. A.N. challenged the Minister’s 9 August 2012 decision affirming a deportation order made on 21 December 2011. The substantive hearing took place on 3 July 2013 before Ms Justice M. H. Clark.
The court found that the Minister had fairly assessed the limited information provided in the application to revoke the order. It said the Minister could not be criticised for failing to assess the effects on C.C. in detail when little information about the child had been submitted. The court also rejected the applicants’ argument that EU citizenship prevented the Minister from considering whether M.C. and C.C. could reasonably relocate to Albania to maintain family life with A.N. It said the question had to be assessed on the particular family’s circumstances, based on information made available to the Minister.
The court said the applicants had not established an entitlement to the relief they sought, and the judicial review application failed. That ruling did not end the matter immediately. The judge said the applicants could make a further application under section 3(11) of the Immigration Act 1999 with fuller information about C.C.’s best interests and the effects of relocation.
Taking account of affidavit information about the child that had not been before the Minister, and the applicants’ apparently inconsistent legal assistance, the court granted a temporary injunction barring A.N.’s deportation for eight weeks from 31 July 2013. The period was intended to allow a focused, expanded application addressing how C.C. would be affected if he travelled with the family to Albania. The judgment said the court could continue the injunction pending the Minister’s decision if such an application was made.