Birmingham City Council v Afsar & Ors [2020] EWHC 864 (QB) (08 April 2020)

Birmingham City Council v Afsar & Ors [2020] EWHC 864 (QB) (08 April 2020)

A final injunction cannot be granted against 'persons unknown' in this protester case because the class was not sufficiently defined or served, and individuals could have been named and joined. The applications to vary injunctions and to reinstate part of the draft judgment fail for lack of evidence, definition, and exceptional circumstances.

Citation
[2020] EWHC 864 (QB)
Parties
Claimant: Birmingham City Council; First Defendant: Mr Shakeel Afsar; Second Defendant: Ms Rosina Afsar; Third Defendant: Mr Amir Ahmed; Fourth Defendant: Persons Unknown; Fifth Defendant: John William Allman
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
08 April 2020
Procedural Posture
Civil Injunction / Post Trial Applications Following Final Order
Outcome
Applications dismissed except as to permission to appeal, which is dealt with separately.
Legal Topics
Injunctions, Protest Law, Persons Unknown, Service of Process, Confidentiality of Judgments, Variation of Orders, Permission to Appeal
Civil Procedure Public Law Human Rights Injunctions Protest Law Persons Unknown Service of Process Confidentiality of Judgments +2 more

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Parties

Birmingham City Council

Claimant

Mr Shakeel Afsar

First Defendant

Ms Rosina Afsar

Second Defendant

Mr Amir Ahmed

Third Defendant

Persons Unknown

Fourth Defendant

John William Allman

Fifth Defendant

Procedural Posture

Civil Injunction / Post Trial Applications Following Final Order

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether a final injunction can be granted against 'persons unknown' in protester cases
  2. 2 Whether the injunctions against named defendants should be varied to allow family visits
  3. 3 Whether part of a draft judgment can be reinstated after hand-down (waiver of confidentiality)

Ratio Decidendi

A final injunction cannot be granted against 'persons unknown' in this protester case because the class was not sufficiently defined or served, and individuals could have been named and joined. The applications to vary injunctions and to reinstate part of the draft judgment fail for lack of evidence, definition, and exceptional circumstances.

Court Disposition

Applications dismissed except as to permission to appeal, which is dealt with separately.

Orders

  • No final injunction granted against the fourth defendant (Persons Unknown).
  • Applications to vary injunctions against first and second defendants dismissed.