Melanie Plimmer

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Year of Call: 1996

Melanie Plimmer's practice is strongly focused on Public and Administrative Law.  She regularly appears in the Administrative Court in judicial review applications raising a wide spectrum of human rights, including property rights, freedom of expression, children's and family rights, the right to liberty, prisoner's rights and compensation for breaches of human rights and equalities legislation.  

Profile and Notable cases

Judicial review
Regularly advises claimants, NGOs, local authorities and trade unions on a wide range of proposed applications for judicial review.  Has been involved in a number of important judicial review cases, particularly since the opening of the Administrative Court in Manchester and Leeds, where applications and hearings are being listed far more quickly than in London.  Has conducted training on behalf of the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Public Law Project on judicial review and continues to provide bespoke in-house training in this area.

Immigration, Asylum and Nationality law
With the benefit of 15 years extensive experience in Immigration and Asylum law, practice now concentrates on cases in the Upper Tribunal (Asylum and Immigration Chamber), Court of Appeal and Administrative Court, complex advisory work and national security.
Undertakes a wide range of advisory work for local authorities, family, personal injury, employment and sports law solicitors on specific immigration issues.  Particular experience in advising sports professionals and defending allegations of employing illegal workers.
Fee-paid Deputy Judge of the Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber).
Contributor to the 5th and 6th Edition of Macdonald's Immigration Law and Practice.
Author of the Immigration Chapter in the upcoming 17th Edition of Bullen & Leake & Jacobs Precedents and Pleadings.

National Security
Represents those claimants involved in SIAC and High Court proceedings.
Considerable experience gained as a Special Advocate in national security cases since 2007 and has recently appeared in the Bank Mellat litigation and a number of lengthy SIAC appeals. 

Equality, Discrimination, Employment and Disciplinary
Member of the approved panel of Counsel for the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Practice focuses upon broader discrimination issues and employment / discrimination issues with a public law overlap.  Recent and increasing experience in disciplinary work for a wide range of professionals.

Recommendations

"Melanie is felt to be one of the most respected regional practitioners in her field. Sources claim that she is "always on the ball." She focuses on claims emanating from human rights, asylum, immigration and national security issues. Plimmer also sits as a part-time immigration judge and is felt to possess "fantastic knowledge of overlapping immigration and prison law concerns." She was recently successful in a watershed case regarding a breach of Article 5 and the just level of damages awarded for such an infraction." Chambers & Partners 2012

Melanie is also described in Chambers & Partners 2012 "as "fearsome in her passion and impressive in her breadth of experience." Her areas of expertise include judicial review, unlawful detention and national security immigration issues. Sources praise her written submissions and add: "She is extremely good at identifying the arguments that have a real prospect of winning and then running with them."

"Melanie Plimmer falls within the 'exceptional category':'she 'combines an acute analytical intelligence with formidable forensic skills', and is a 'supremely effective advocate'". Legal 500 2011

"Approachable and committed, she is 'quite outstanding at immigration work' and 'one of the most frequent users of the Administrative Court." Chambers & Partners 2011, Band 1 for Public and Administrative law

"Renowned for her expert knowledge on matters where prison law and immigration cross over... she is "extremely hard-working, very detailed in her advice and creative in her thinking." Her advocacy skills also impress sources.' Chambers & Partners 2011

Described in Legal 500 2010 as a "judicial review expert"

"Imaginative, creative and clearly at the forefront of the law" Chambers & Partners 2009

"her work...'sets her apart from the norm and she has set the standards for others to follow'..." Chambers & Partners 2008

"...strong legal mind and court presence" Legal 500 2007 & 2008

"Her...'knowledge of the law is phenomenal'..." Chambers and Partners 2007

Cases 

Judicial review recent cases

R (Arslan) v SSHD [2011] EWHC 9 (Admin) (unusual fresh claim in which it was accepted that the Claimant's mental state was such that interrogation on return at the Turkish airport would have a sufficiently grave impact upon him to give his contended Article 3 breach a realistic prospect of success.  This claim has now been heard by the Tribunal and his appeal was allowed)

Anderson v Independent Adjudicator [2010] EWHC 2260 (Admin) (in finding a prisoner guilty of a breach of the Prison Rules and awarding him extra days, the Adjudicator's decision was vitiated by procedural unfairness in that he failed to give sufficient reasons, and the prisoner therefore should be released)

Hoole (R on the application of) v Parole Board [2010] EWHC 186 (Admin) (insufficient compassionate grounds for PB to provide a prioritization hearing)

Pennington (No 2) (R, on the application of) v Parole Board [2010] EWHC 78 (Admin) (Claimant awarded £1750 in damages arising out of some three months delay on the part of the PB)

Gregson (R on the application of) v Parole Board [2009] EWHC 3639 (Admin) (Court accepted the claimant's argument that the Parole Board had not properly addressed the relevant triangulation of interests in relation to a closed document before it and ordered a reconsideration of the decision not to release a prisoner)

Pennington (R, on the application of) v Parole Board   [2009] EWHC 2296 (Admin) (Unexplained Parole Board delay in issuing directions and in reaching its decision, in respect of a prisoner the Parole Board ordered release, constitutes a breach of Article 5(4) entitling the Claimant to damages)

Riley (R, on the application of) v Governor of HMP Frankland [2009] EWHC 2146& 2147 (oral hearing must be held in light of prisoner's medical condition and reports)

Storm (R, on the application of) v CART 9 July 2009 (no requirement to hold an oral hearing)

Card (R, on the application of) v SSHD [2009] EWHC 2128 (Admin) (refusal to accept fresh human rights claim based on Article 8 analysis of House of Lords decisions quashed)

AS (R, on the application of) v SSJ [2009] All ER (D) 108 (Jun); [2009] EWHC 1315 (Admin) (insufficient reasons provided for refusal of compassionate release on grounds of ill-health)

James and Lee v SSJ [2009] UKHL 22 (no breach of Art 5 in failure to provide an effective Parole Board hearing); SSJ v Walker and James [2008] EWCA Civ 30 (Minister of Justice acted "unlawfully" - IPP sentences)

Immigration recent cases

MA (Pakistan) v SSHD [2011] EWCA Civ 322 (the original IJ's decision was a sound one which properly took into account N (Kenya) and was adequately reasoned, and the AIT should not have gone on to reconsider the appeal)

TF (Angola) v SSHD [2009] EWCA Civ 905 (fresh evidence insufficiently clear to render AIT decision unfair

IA (Syria) and SA (Syria) v SSHD (CA Civ Div) [2007] All ER (D) 211 (Nov) (Amnesty International and expert evidence must be accorded greater weight)

K and Fornah v SSHD [2006] UKHL 46 (women and family members can be a "particular social group" within the Refugee Convention)

RG (Ethiopia) v SSHD [2006] EWCA Civ 339 (Kenyan women can constitute a "particular social group"

Hatungimana v SSHD (CA Civ Div) [2006] All ER (D) 281 (Feb) (clarification of Court of Appeal's jurisdiction to remit cases to AIT)

R and others v SSHD [2005] EWCA Civ 982 (guidelines on the 'error of law' jurisdiction of the AIT)

Liu v SSHD [2005] 1 WLR 2858 (persecution may serve to create or identify a particular social group)

National Security recent cases

E1 v SSHD [SC/93/2010] (Appeal against refusal of re-entry dismissed)

T6 v SSHD [SC/95/2010, 18.2.11] (8 day case in which SIAC found that there were serious reasons for considering that T6 had committed a serious non-political crime in Algeria (conspiracy to defraud / fraudulent trading) and his removal would not breach the ECHR)

Bank Mellat v HM Treasury [2011] EWCA Civ 1 (Bank's appeal against the imposition of the financial restrictions upon it dismissed)

Bank Mellat v HM Treasury [2010] EWHC 1332 (QB)

Bank Mellat v HM Treasury [2010] EWCA Civ 483 (the principles in AF (no 3) apply to proceedings taken by the Treasury against the Bank).

AR v SSHD [2009] EWHC 1736 (Admin) (Modifications sought refused)

SSHD v AV [2009] EWHC 902 (Admin) (Control order revoked)

SSHD v AR [2008] EWHC 3164 (Admin) (Control order upheld)

SSHD v AR and others [2008] EWHC 2789 (Admin) (generic determination of the risk to national security posed by members of the LIFG)

Employment / Discrimination recent cases

Bayode v Chief Constable of Derbyshire [2008] UKEAT 0499

Harris v NKL Automotive Ltd & Anor [2007] UKEAT 0134

Oyarce v Cheshire County Council [2007] ICR 1693

Memberships
Member of the Northern Circuit Free Representation and Advice Service
Manchester Prison Law Practitioners Group (MPLPG)
Association of Prison Lawyers (ALA)
Northern Administrative Law Association (NALA)
Member of the Trinidad and Tobago Bar

Career & Education
Garden Court North Chambers 1997-2009
Bar Vocational Course 1995-1996
LLM in Employment law, London University 1993-1995
LLB (Honours) 2:1, Bristol University 1990-1993

Chambers
Melanie Plimmer is also a member of 3 Hare Court in London, the Chambers of James Dingemans QC. (www.3harecourt.com)