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As a government lawyer your clients are experiencing various impacts on policy making from numerous and competing interests such as austerity, efficiency, collective/individual rights, European and devolved/delegated jurisdictions. Your job advising on legislation and risk of challenge through judicial review is increasingly time consuming and complex.

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With reform of retained EU law high on the agenda, post-Brexit legal changes remains a key issue. Get key information and updates for all practitioners, with practice area specific Brexit content across the modules.

Judicial Review

We outline the key principles and procedural requirements with a clear focus on the public sector perspective. The content focusses primarily on judicial review in the Administrative Court in England and Wales.

Public Procurement

Failure to stick to procedures can have significant legal, financial and practical consequences for a contracting authority. We guide you through various processes, focussing on the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.

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Associated legal terms

Fundamental right

Fundamental right describes, in practice, a core legal entitlement that attracts heightened judicial protection and guides statutory interpretation and administrative decision‑making.

In England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the term is descriptive rather than defined in statute. Courts speak of fundamental common‑law constitutional rights (such as access to the courts, liberty and freedom of expression) and of Convention rights under the Human Rights Act 1998. Such rights drive the principle of legality (clear words are needed to override them) and proportionality analysis. They shape judicial review and remedies: public authorities must act compatibly with Convention rights; incompatible primary legislation may prompt a declaration of incompatibility; devolved legislation is outside competence if ECHR‑incompatible.

In Ireland, fundamental rights is the label for constitutional rights in Articles 40–44 of the Constitution, elaborated by case law (including recognition of unenumerated personal rights). These bind the State, guide proportionality and can invalidate inconsistent legislation, with direct remedies.

Across both systems the European Convention on Human Rights is influential. Ireland also applies the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights when EU law is engaged; the Charter no longer forms part of UK domestic law post‑Brexit.

Practitioners invoke fundamental rights in pleadings, proportionality assessments and compliance.

Substantial evidence

Substantial evidence describes a level and quality of proof that is sufficiently credible, relevant and reliable to support a legal finding or decision. It is more than a mere scintilla or suspicion, but does not necessarily require proof beyond reasonable doubt or on the balance of probabilities; rather, it is evidence a reasonable decision‑maker could accept as adequate.

In UK and Irish practice, “substantial evidence” is most often encountered in judicial review, administrative and regulatory decision‑making, disciplinary proceedings and some employment and immigration contexts. Courts use it to assess whether a tribunal, public authority or regulator had a proper evidential basis for its conclusions and thus acted lawfully and rationally.

The expression is generally a case‑law concept rather than a precisely defined statutory test, and is interpreted in light of the overall standard of review being applied. Usage and meaning are broadly consistent across England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland, though the exact formulation and intensity of scrutiny will vary with the applicable statutory scheme, procedural rules and appellate or supervisory jurisdiction.

Vienna convention on the law of treaties

The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT) is the core international instrument that sets out how treaties are made, interpreted, applied, amended and terminated. It codifies customary international law on treaties and is routinely used by UK and Irish courts, governments and practitioners when dealing with public international law issues.

Key provisions include rules on treaty formation and consent to be bound; interpretation (Articles 31–33); reservations; invalidity (for example, error, fraud, corruption, coercion); and grounds for suspension or termination, including material breach and supervening impossibility. These rules underpin advice on treaty drafting, state responsibility and disputes before international courts and tribunals.

The UK and Ireland are parties to the VCLT and treat many of its rules as reflecting customary international law. While not directly incorporated as a whole into domestic legislation, its interpretative principles are regularly cited in case law across England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. Usage and legal effect are broadly consistent across these jurisdictions, particularly in foreign relations law, extradition, investment treaties, and human rights instruments such as the European Convention on Human Rights.
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