About Public Law
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.
Brexit
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.
Expertise on all matters
An essential resource providing guidance & materials on core legal subjects relevant to lawyers in all areas of legal practice, as well as specialist content designed to assist government lawyers in a range of key areas
Topics We Cover
Our Public Law Experts
Beth Pipe
Charles Brasted
Andrea Biondi
Peter Ware
Brendan Ryan
Latest Public Law News
The Ministry of Justice has published its annual report to the Joint Committee on Human Rights setting out the government’s position on the...
Practice Directions for the UK Supreme Court (UKSC) and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) were amended on 22 December 2025. The...
Pensions analysis: The Pensions Ombudsman has partly upheld a complaint about a return of pension paid by mistake. Martin Scott of gunnercooke LLP...
The Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments (JCSI) has published its 43rd report of session 2024–26. Three instruments were drawn to the special...
The Institute for Government (IfG) has published a report calling for reforms to the UK’s public inquiry system, warning of rising costs and limited...
Latest Public Law Practice Notes
Contractual damages—general principlesThis Practice Note considers the general principles of recovering damages for contractual breach, starting with...
Introduction to the EU GDPR and UK GDPRThis Practice Note provides an introduction to both the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation...
Bringing a claim—private law claim for breach of statutory dutyWhat is a private law claim for breach of statutory duty?A private law claim for breach...
Court of Justice State aid national references—ongoing cases trackerThe table below lists national references to the Court of Justice concerning the...
General Court State aid appeals—ongoing cases trackerThe below tracks live General Court appeal cases involving State aid (Articles 107 to 109 TFEU)....
Latest Public Law Precedents
Letter rejecting a bidder during dialogue phase—competitive dialogue procedure—pre-PA 2023 [Archived]ARCHIVED: This Precedent has been archived and is...
Letter rejecting a bidder following negotiation—competitive procedure with negotiation and innovation partnership procedure—pre-PA 2023...
Confidentiality agreement—one-way—pro-recipientThis Agreement is made on [date].Parties1[Insert name of party] [of [insert address] OR a company...
Confidentiality agreement—mutualThis Agreement is made on [date]Parties1[insert name of party] [of [insert details ] OR a company incorporated in...
Confidentiality agreement—one-way—pro-discloserThis Agreement is made on [date]Parties1[Insert name of party][ of [insert details] OR a company...
Latest Public Law Q&As
Featured Public Law content
Sources of constitutional law
Sources of constitutional lawIn briefThe British constitution is unwritten in the sense that it does not derive from a single constitutional text. It...
Methods of statutory interpretation
Methods of statutory interpretation used to resolve disputes about the meaning of legislationIntroduction to statutory interpretationThe aim of...
Convention rights—structure of qualified rights
Convention rights—structure of qualified rightsThe rights preserved under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as set out in the Human...
Judicial review—time limits and the pre-action protocol
Judicial review—time limits and the pre-action protocolWhen considering whether and how to bring a claim for judicial review, the first step is to...
Grounds of judicial review—unreasonableness
Grounds of judicial review—unreasonablenessThis Practice Note outlines the ground of judicial review usually known as unreasonableness or...
What is fettering of discretion in judicial review? When is it an actionable ground of challenge and what must be established for a challenge to succeed?
Separation of powers—legislative, executive and judiciary
Separation of powers—legislative, executive and judiciarySource of the doctrine of the separation of powersThe origins of the doctrine of the...
Grounds of judicial review—illegality
Grounds of judicial review—illegalityOverview of the illegality groundIllegality is the first of the grounds on judicial review set out by Lord...
What is a public authority?
What is a public authority?There is no single, universal answer to the question whether a particular organisation is treated, in law, as a public...
Grounds of judicial review—procedural impropriety
Grounds of judicial review—procedural improprietyProcedural impropriety as a ground of judicial review‘Procedural impropriety’ is the last of the...
Judicial review—interested parties and interveners
Judicial review—interested parties and intervenersInterested partiesIn the context of judicial review, an interested party is 'any person (other than...
Parliamentary supremacy—implied repeal
Parliamentary supremacy—implied repealEssential to Parliament’s legislative supremacy is the principle that Parliament is not bound by its...
What is the legal basis and effect of revoking UK legislation?
Grounds of judicial review—breach of legitimate expectation
Grounds of judicial review—breach of legitimate expectationThe ground of challenge based on legitimate expectations is designed to hold a public...
Royal Charters
Royal ChartersWhat is a Royal Charter?The term 'Royal Charter' has transformed over time. Originally, a Royal Charter was a procedure by which the...
Costs for judicial review—general principles
Costs for judicial review—general principlesGeneral rule on costs in judicial reviewThe general rule in relation to costs in judicial review, as in...
Judicial review—what it is and when it can be used
Judicial review—what it is and when it can be usedWhat is judicial review?Judicial review is a process by which the courts exercise a supervisory...
Judicial deference and the margin of appreciation
Judicial deference and the margin of appreciationJudicial deference is also known as the principle that 'respect is a central concept in judicial...
Associated legal terms
Application to re-register—public to private
An application for re-registration from public to private will be made on a Companies House form RR02.
Corporate social responsibility or CSR
An aspect of governance'>corporate governance (and shareholder stewardship) whereby an organisation aims to create a positive impact through its commercial activities on its environment, consumers, employees, and other stakeholders.
Detection Limit
The level at which radioactivity can be detected above background levels.
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