14/03/2002

NI Human Rights Commission awaits Lords decision

The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has appealed to the House of Lords in a bid to win the power to appear in court as an interested third party or a “friend of the court”.

The case, which was presented to the Lords on March 11, is seeking to overturn a Court of Appeal decision issued last April which stated the Commission did not have the power to appear before the courts and present arguments on human rights principles that are of public importance.

The ruling on the case, which was presented over two days, is expected to be delivered soon.

However, a spokesperson for the Commission said: “We’re hoping it will be soon but it could be next month. All we do know is that the judgment will be handed down before the Lords summer recess which is in July.”

The case arises out of the Commission’s attempt to intervene in the inquest into the Omagh bomb to include an examination of police action in response to the bomb warning.

The coroner refused to allow the Commission to intervene and the Commission then sought judicial review of this decision before the Lord Chief Justice, Sir Robert Carswell. The Lord Chief Justice upheld the coroner’s view and so did two judges in the Court of Appeal.

One of the Court of Appeal judges, Mr Justice Kerr, however disagreed with his two fellow judges and it is his judgment that the Commission is asking the House of Lords to endorse.

Professor Brice Dickson, the head of the Human Rights Commission, said: “The Court of Appeal’s judgment was a great disappointment to us. It meant that the Commission had less power to present arguments to courts than non-governmental organisations and other statutory bodies without a direct human rights mandate. We will be asking their lordships to reverse the decision of the court in Northern Ireland and to accept how vital it is for a statutory human rights body to be able to give its opinion to judges.”

The Northern Ireland Office has been granted leave to intervene in the case in order to support the Commission’s position.

The government argues that its intention had always been to give the Commission the power which the coroner denied to it.

Three non-governmental organisations active in the human rights field, Amnesty International, British Irish Rights Watch and the Committee on the Administration of Justice have also been permitted to make a joint written intervention.

(AMcE)

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