Tom Cockroft successfully represents the Secretary of State for Justice in ‘closed to open’ prison conditions JR

In R (Oxendale) v Secretary of State for Justice [2024] EWHC 2407 (Admin), Tom Cockroft, instructed by the Government Legal Department, successfully represented the Defendant before the High Court. Link to decision: https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2024/2407.html

The Claimant had been sentenced to imprisonment for public protection for committing serious sexual offences against children. Following the expiry of his minimum tariff the Parole Board recommended that he be transferred from closed to open prison conditions. The Secretary of State for Justice declined to follow the Parole Board’s recommendation due to the risk that he continued to present to the public. The Claimant sought to judicially review this decision. However, on a full hearing of the merits, the High Court rejected the claim. This has been a highly litigated issue in recent years with two appeals due to be heard by the Court of Appeal later this term, so this represents a timely and important outcome for the Secretary of State.