Our litigation powers: taking cases to court

We have a range of litigation powers which are set out in the Equality Act 2006. We can:

• provide legal assistance (Section 28)
• bring legal proceedings in our name (Section 30)
• intervene in legal proceedings brought by others (Section 30).

We have the power to provide legal assistance for claims of discrimination made under the Equality Act 2010. This can include legal representation and can extend to discrimination cases with a human rights element. However, Section 28 does not permit us to help people in cases that only raise human rights issues.

Section 28 of the Equality Act 2006 gives more information.

We can bring legal proceedings if they are relevant to a matter in which we have a function. For example, if we think that a public body has acted in a way that breaches the Equality Act 2010 or the Human Rights Act 1998, we can issue judicial review proceedings in our name.

We may apply for a judicial review on any grounds, as long as the subject matter of the claim relates to one of our statutory functions. In human rights cases we do not need to be a ‘victim’ affected by the alleged violation – a requirement that otherwise applies to those wishing to bring judicial review proceedings under the Human Rights Act.

Section 30 of the Equality Act 2006 gives more information.

We have the power to intervene in court proceedings in human rights and equality cases initiated by others.

An intervention allows us, with the court’s permission, to provide a legal analysis of one or more of the issues, or provide additional evidence. The purpose of our intervention is to help the court in its determination of the case.

Section 30 of the Equality Act 2006 gives more information.

If we think a public body has acted - or failed to act - in a way that breaches the Equality Act 2010 or the Human Rights Act 1998, we can apply for judicial review.

Judicial review is a court proceeding where a judge can decide whether the public body acted unlawfully. The judge can also make earlier decisions invalid or issue an injunction (England and Wales) or an interdict (Scotland).

We may apply for judicial review on any grounds if the subject matter relates to our areas of work.

We do not have to be the victim of alleged human rights violations to apply under the Human Rights Act 1998, unlike other individuals and organisations.

Examples of situations where we, rather than a victim, might do this include where:

• government announces a change in the law which we believe will lead to people’s human rights being violated
• the subject matter of the case means we are best placed to act because of our past work or expertise
• there are multiple victims who can illustrate a problem better than just one of them
• the actual or potential victims do not have access to lawyers or cannot fund an application

Section 30 of the Equality Act 2006 gives more information.