Court of Appeal rules on the proper approach to appeals from the Upper Tribunal

05/12/13

Obrey v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2013] EWCA Civ 1584, judgment of 5 December 2013

In this judgment concerning the compatibility of housing benefit rules with the ECHR, the Court of Appeal has laid down guidance of general application in relation to the proper approach to appeals from decisions of the Upper Tribunal.  Appeals to the Court of Appeal from the Upper Tribunal are on points of law only and the Court held that, in determining whether an issue is one of law or fact, it is necessary to adopt a pragmatic approach which pays proper deference to the expertise of the Upper Tribunal.  In the instant case, it was therefore wrong for the Appellants to seek to reargue from scratch the question whether the housing benefit rules at issue were objectively justified within the meaning of Article 14 ECHR.  This was an issue which was best left for evaluation and judgment by a specialist appellate tribunal with particular expertise in social security law.  The appellants had not demonstrated any error of law in the Upper Tribunal's approach.

The judgment is here.