Judge criticises ‘rolling’ judicial reviews in dispute over parking control zone: report

A judge has reportedly condemned the practice of ‘rolling’ judicial reviews in which the same issue is raised in different guises.

Francis Taylor Building Chambers said Mrs Justice Lang had dismissed an application to quash a decision by the London Borough of Hackney to introduce a parking control zone in Stamford Hill.

The claimant, a Mrs Rothschild, is a member of the Orthodox Jewish community and challenged the decision on public sector equality duty grounds for having failed to have regard to impact of these traffic management measures on observant Jews, of whom there is a large local community.

This followed an earlier claim brought by Mrs Rothschild on equalities grounds in March 2020, which was settled by consent while the council consulted on new operating hours and designs for its parking zone and made a new equalities assessment. 

FTB, whose barrister Sarah Sackman acted for Hackney, said the consent order settled the claim and the renewed application made under that order challenged a new decision by Hackney in December 2020 to adopt shorter operating hours for its parking zone.

It said the judge made clear in dismissing the claim and awarding costs to Hackney that the Administrative Court deprecates ‘rolling’ judicial review claims, in which new challenges are bolted on to existing claims.

Mark Smulian