The new system of control orders established by the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 (2005, c.2, ISBN 0105402052) will extend the role of Special Advocates (lawyers appointed to represent appellants within the closed hearing system before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) who have security clearance to examine material kept secret from the appellant and his/her ordinary lawyers). In light of this, the Committees report examines the operation of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) over the last eight years and the use of Special Advocates, in order to identify lessons to be learned to ensure the adequacy of procedural safeguards in the future system. Issues considered include: the background to SIAC and the passing of the 2005 Act; the operation of SIAC and its impact on the legal and human rights of appellants; the Special Advocate system as it operated under SIAC and its extension into the High Court. The Committee concludes that there are a number of defects with the Special Advocate system as it operated through SIAC, and a number of improvements can be made to improve its use under the 2005 Act, including the establishment of an Office of the Special Advocates to ensure provision of appropriate expert support and facilities, and that appellants are offered, where practical, a choice of Special Advocate from a security-cleared pool.

operation of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) and the use of special Advocates : Seventh report of session 2004-05, Vol. 2: Oral and written Evidence

This document sets out the Governments response to the Committees report (HCP 323-I, session 2004-05; ISBN 021502379X) on the new system of control orders established by the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 (2005, c.2, ISBN 0105402052). This system will extend the role of Special Advocates, which are lawyers appointed to represent appellants within the closed hearing system before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) who have security clearance to examine material kept secret from the appellant and his/her ordinary lawyers.

The last twenty years have seen an unprecedented rise in the use of secret courts or ‘closed material proceedings’ largely brought about in response to the need to protect intelligence sources in the fight against terrorism. This has called into question the commitment of legal systems to long-cherished principles of adversarial justice and due process. Foremost among the measures designed to minimise the prejudice caused to parties who have been excluded from such proceedings has been the use of ‘special advocates’ who are given access to sensitive national security material and can make representations to the court on behalf of excluded parties. Special advocates are now deployed across a range of administrative, civil and criminal proceedings in many common law jurisdictions including the UK, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Australia. This book analyses the professional services special advocates offer across a range of different types of closed proceedings. Drawing on extensive interviews with special advocates and with lawyers and judges who have worked with them, the book examines the manner in which special advocates are appointed and supported, how their position differs from that of ordinary counsel within the adversarial system, and the challenges they face in the work that they do. Comparisons are made between different special advocate systems and with other models of security-cleared counsel, including that used in the United States, to consider what changes might be made to strengthen their adversarial role in closed proceedings. In making an assessment of the future of special advocacy, the book argues that there is a need to reconceptualise the unique role that special advocates play in the administration of justice.

Helen Duffy's analysis of international law and practice in relation to terrorism and counter-terrorism provides a framework for analysing the lawfulness of the many legislative, policy and judicial developments which have proliferated since 9/11. Among the many specific issues she addresses are targeted killings and the death of Osama bin Laden, detentions (including Guantanamo Bay), sanctions regimes, surveillance, extraordinary renditions, the prohibition on 'association' or 'support' for terrorism and the evolving preventive role of criminal law. She also considers the unfolding responses to political and judicial wrongs committed in the war on terror, such as the impact of the courts on human rights protection. While exploring areas of controversy, uncertainty and flux, she questions post-9/11 allegations of gaping holes, inadequacies or transformation in the international legal order and concludes by highlighting characteristics of the 'war on terror' and questioning its longer term implications.

'Public Law' is an introductory textbook that offers a mixture of black letter law and political analysis to give students an excellent grounding in the subject. It covers all of the key topics on undergraduate courses and includes a number of pedagogical features to aid understanding.