Shelley Jarvis v The Information Commissioner
[2024] UKFTT 605 (GRC)
M Hands v The Information Commissioner
25 January 2024
[2024] UKFTT 86 (GRC)
First-tier Tribunal
Someone appealed a Scottish Information Commissioner's decision to the wrong court. Because they didn't respond to the court's questions about why it should hear the case, the appeal was dismissed. The correct court was the Court of Session in Scotland, but the difference in how costs are handled meant the English court couldn't transfer it.
Key Facts
- •Appeal against a decision of the Scottish Information Commissioner relating to the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
- •Appellant failed to respond to case management directions to state the tribunal's jurisdiction or provide reasons why the appeal should not be struck out.
- •The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) lacks jurisdiction to hear appeals against decisions of the Scottish Information Commissioner.
Legal Principles
The First-tier Tribunal has no jurisdiction to hear appeals against decisions of the Scottish Information Commissioner.
Section 56 FOISA
Appeals against decisions of the Scottish Information Commissioner under FOISA must be made to the Court of Session.
Section 56 FOISA
The tribunal may transfer proceedings, but this was deemed inappropriate due to differing expenses regimes.
Rule 5(3)(k)(i)
An appeal can be struck out if the tribunal lacks jurisdiction.
Rule 8(2)(a)
Outcomes
The appeal was struck out.
The First-tier Tribunal lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeal against the Scottish Information Commissioner's decision, and the appellant failed to respond to case management directions or provide reasons why the appeal should not be struck out.