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' unless the class is properly defined, the individuals are identifiable and have been served with proceedings; the claimant failed to meet these requirements. Applications to vary injunctions and to waive confidentiality in the draft judgment were refused due to lack of evidence, procedural defects, and absence of exceptional circumstances.

Citation
[2020] EWHC 864
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 for permission to appeal, which is dealt with separately.
Legal Topics
Injunctions, Protests, Persons Unknown, Service of Proceedings, Variation of Orders, Confidentiality of Judgments, Permission to Appeal
Civil Procedure Public Law Human Rights Injunctions Protests Persons Unknown Service of Proceedings Variation of Orders +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 to vary the terms of injunctions against named defendants
  3. 3 Whether to waive confidentiality in a draft judgment

Ratio Decidendi

A final injunction cannot be granted against 'persons unknown' unless the class is properly defined, the individuals are identifiable and have been served with proceedings; the claimant failed to meet these requirements. Applications to vary injunctions and to waive confidentiality in the draft judgment were refused due to lack of evidence, procedural defects, and absence of exceptional circumstances.

Court Disposition

Applications dismissed except for 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.