Naina Patel

Naina’s practice encompasses all areas of public law and human rights law, including immigration and asylum.  She is developing particular experience in claims for judicial review involving foreign and defence policy, the Human Rights Act 1998 and public international law.

Foreign and defence policy

• R (Al-Skeini and Others) v United Kingdom (Application No. 55721/07)
  Acted for the claimants in this appeal from [2007] UKHL 26; [2007] 3 WLR 33 concerning the extra-territorial application of the Human Rights Act 1998 to killings by British soldiers in post-war Iraq.  
• Al Rawi & ors v Security Service, Secret Intelligence Service & Ors [2011] UKSC
  Acted for JUSTICE/Liberty in this appeal from [2010] EWCA Civ 482 and [2009] EWHC 2959 on the question of whether the Government may withhold sensitive evidence from several former victims of extraordinary rendition and torture in civil claims for damages but rely on that evidence in closed proceedings (junior to John Howell QC).  Acted for individual claimants below (junior to Michael Fordham QC).
• R (Madni) v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Commissioner of the British Indian Ocean Territory (2010)
  Acting as junior counsel in this challenge to the refusal to disclose information relating to the Claimant’s rendition through the British territory of Diego Garcia (junior to Nathalie Lieven QC and Ben Jaffey). 
• R (Nuclear Information Service) v Secretary of State for Defence and Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office [2008] EWHC 1634 (Admin)
  Junior counsel in this challenge to the Government’s decision to replace the Trident nuclear deterrent system on the grounds of its incompatibility with obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and customary international law and a failure to consult (junior to Michael Fordham QC).
• R (Saleh Hasan) v Secretary of State for Trade and Industry [2008] EWCA Civ 1312
  Represented the Claimant in this appeal from [2007] EWHC 2630 (Admin), a refusal to grant judicial review of the Government’s failure to provide reasons for its decisions relating to the licensing of military equipment for export to Israel (junior to Michael Fordham QC). 

Immigration and asylum

• HJ (Iran) v Secretary of State for the Home Department; HT (Cameroon) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2010] UKSC 31
  Represented UNHCR in this landmark case on the rights of gay asylum seekers where the Supreme Court held that such individuals could not be expected to seek to protect themselves from persecution in their home country by concealing sexual identity (junior to Michael Fordham QC).
• Naina is acting in a number of cases involving claims for permission to work arising out of the Court of Appeal judgment in R (ZO) Somalia v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2009] 1 WLR 2477.
• Naina appears regularly in the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal and in judicial reviews of fresh claims and deportation decisions in the High Court.
• Naina has also advised the Immigration Law Practitioner’s Association on the legality of performance standards introduced by the Legal Services Commission for franchised immigration and asylum solicitors in the context of the Government’s detained fast-track scheme (as junior to Michael Fordham QC).

• Tariq v Home Office [2011] UKSC 35
  Acted for JUSTICE/Liberty in these appeals regarding the compatibility of the use of closed material in employment proceedings with Article 6 ECHR and EU law (junior to John Howell QC). 
• R (British American Tobacco) v Secretary of State for Health (2010)
  Acting in this challenge to the Government’s decision to introduce a ban on the display of tobacco products (junior to Lord Pannick QC and Tom de la Mare).
• R (McKoy) v Oxford Brookes University [2009] EWCA Civ 1561
  Successfully represented the Claimant in resisting an appeal from [2009] EWHC 667 (Admin) whereby a University’s decision to exclude a student from a BSc in Midwifery was quashed as being ultra vires its own regulations (sole counsel at both hearings).
• R (London Secure Services Ltd) v Youth Justice Board [2009] EWHC 2347 (Admin)
  Successfully represented the Defendant in this challenge to its decision to reject certain tenders for the provision of accommodation for children and young people in secure children's homes (junior to Gemma White).
• Hoffmann v Commissioner for the Turks and Caicos Islands Commission of Inquiry 2008-2009 and Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands (Supreme Court of the TCI)
  Part of the Claimant’s team in this judicial review of the Inquiry into whether there was corruption or other serious dishonesty in relation to past and present elected members of the the Turks and Caicos Islands’ legislature (junior to Jim Sturman QC and Javan Herberg).
• R (Compton) v Wiltshire Primary Care Trust [2008] EWCA Civ 749
  Intervened on behalf of the Public Law Project in this important hearing in the Court of Appeal on the courts’ protective cost order jurisdiction in public law cases, and the interplay between the guidance in R (Corner House Research) v Secretary of State for Trade and Industry [2005] EWCA Civ 192 and the Civil Procedure Rules (with Richard Drabble QC and Ben Jaffey).
• R (Green) v City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court [2007] EWHC 2785 (Admin)
  Successfully resisted a claim for review of the Court’s decision not to issue a summons against the producer of “Jerry Springer the Opera” for the common law offence of blasphemous libel (sole counsel for the producer).
• YL v Birmingham City Council and Others [2007] UKHL 27; [2007] 3 WLR 112
  Represented YL in this appeal to the House of Lords concerning the application of section 6(3)(b) of the Human Rights Act 1998 to a privately run care home in respect of “functions of a public nature” (junior to David Pannick QC).

Naina has a growing practice in public international law.  She acts regularly in claims for judicial review involving public international law.  She has also advised in relation international agreements and the compatibility of domestic legislation with international legal obligations.

• R (Al-Skeini and Others) v United Kingdom (Application No. 55721/07)
  Acted for the claimants in this appeal from [2007] UKHL 26; [2007] 3 WLR 33 concerning the extra-territorial application of the Human Rights Act 1998 to killings by British soldiers in post-war Iraq. 
• HJ (Iran) v Secretary of State for the Home Department; HT (Cameroon) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2010] UKSC 31
  Represented UNHCR in this landmark case on the rights of gay asylum seekers where the Supreme Court held that such individuals could not be expected to seek to protect themselves from persecution in their home country by concealing sexual identity (junior to Michael Fordham QC). 
• R (Madni) v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Commissioner of the British Indian Ocean Territory (2010)
  Acting as junior counsel in this challenge to the refusal to disclose information relating to the Claimant’s rendition through the British territory of Diego Garcia (junior to Nathalie Lieven QC and Ben Jaffey).
• R (Kammash & Ors) v Ministry of Defence (2009)
  Representing REDRESS, an intervener in this claim by Iraqi nationals arising out of their treatment by British forces in Iraq (junior to Dinah Rose QC). 
• R (Nuclear Information Service) v Secretary of State for Defence and Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office [2008] EWHC 1634 (Admin)
  Junior counsel in this challenge to the Government’s decision to replace the Trident nuclear deterrent system on the grounds of its incompatibility with obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and customary international law and a failure to consult (junior to Michael Fordham QC).
• R (Clarkson) v Secretary of State for Defence (2008) 
  Counsel in this challenge to the Government’s retention of “smart” cluster bombs on the grounds that their use is incompatible with international humanitarian law as reflected in customary international law.

Naina has already developed a strong practice in competition law, having spent a secondment at the Office of Fair Trading advising on a major cartel investigation into the construction industry.  Naina’s interest in competition and international trade law builds upon a strong academic background in economics, which she has studied to PhD level at Harvard.  She has since worked with a variety of other regulators, including Ofgem, the GMC, GTC, the SRA and the FSA.

• Tariq v Home Office [2011] UKSC 35
  Acted for JUSTICE/Liberty in these appeals regarding the compatibility of the use of closed material in employment proceedings with Article 6 ECHR and EU law (junior to John Howell QC). 
• Naina has advised in relation to the legislative implications of the Technical Standards Directive in the domestic context (junior to David Pannick QC and Tom de la Mare).
• Naina has also advised in relation to the competition law implications of the London Living Wage (junior to Tom de la Mare).
• Naina has advised in relation to a major potential group anti-trust action and in the communications sector (junior to Tom de la Mare).
• Cartel Investigation into the Construction Industry
  Advised the Office of Fair Trading on issues arising in one of the largest ever Competition Act investigations, as a result of which a Statement of Objections has been issued against 112 firms in the construction sector in England.
• Stones v KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
  Defended one of the first claims brought under EC Regulation 261/2004 governing compensation for denied boarding in relation to a contract of carriage.

Naina has broad experience of commercial litigation in areas including consumer credit, aviation, civil fraud, directors’ duties, shareholder rights and the supply of goods and services. She has represented both claimants and defendants in interlocutory work and at trial.  She is particularly interested in commercial disputes within a regulatory context.

• Naina has advised a public authority in relation to the availability of injunctive relief to forestall arbitration proceedings (as junior to Tony Peto QC).
• Naina has advised a major utility in relation to a potential claim as to misrepresentation based on representations relating to changes in the regulatory landscape (as junior to Tom Beasley QC).
• Naina has advised a major corporation in relation to the commercialisation of waterway rights (as junior to Charles Flint QC).
• Lombard North Central v TJ Transport Limited
  Successfully resisted an interlocutory application in relation to this multi-track claim involving allegations of misrepresentation, mistake and fraud and recovered costs in full.

Naina has a broad experience of employment law, involving work in the Employment Tribunal, the County Court and the High Court.  She has been involved in several high worth “whistle-blowing” actions, claims for breach of contract and cases involving restrictive covenants and TUPE transfers.  She regularly represents both claimants and respondents in unfair dismissal and discrimination cases.  She also acts for individuals and for regulatory bodies in the employment field, such as the General Teaching Council and the General Medical Council.

Naina has a particular interest in discrimination on the grounds of religion and belief, and the interplay between the law in this area and Article 9 ECHR jurisprudence.

• Tariq v Home Office [2011] UKSC 35
  Acted for JUSTICE/Liberty in these appeals regarding the compatibility of the use of closed material in employment proceedings with Article 6 ECHR and EU law (junior to John Howell QC). 
• General Teaching Council v Beresford
  Successfully represented a registered teacher at a multi-day hearing in response to allegations that he failed to manage school finances properly, to fulfil his teaching and managerial responsibilities and referred to members of staff and the governing body using inappropriate language.
• Burke v (1) College of Law and (2) The Law Society (Employment Tribunal)
  Successfully represented the Second Respondent at a three-day hearing of claims as to a failure to make reasonable adjustments in the arrangements for sitting the Legal Practice Course.
• L v (1) A Law Firm and (2) A Global Legal Recruitment Agency (Employment Tribunal)
  Successfully represented the First Respondent at an 8-day hearing of claims as to religious, racial, sex and sexual orientation, age and disability discrimination, whistleblowing, breach of contract and equal pay, in the context of ancillary High Court injunctive proceedings.
• Batty v Avery Weigh-Tronix (Employment Tribunal)
  Successfully represented a Respondent at a 4-day hearing relating to disability-related discrimination, direct discrimination and the duty to make reasonable adjustments under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
• Coogan v Buckinghamshire County Council & Governing Body of Westfield School (Employment Tribunal)
  Obtained a reinstatement against a local education authority on behalf of deputy headteacher, having successfully represented her in a 3-day unfair dismissal hearing before the Employment Tribunal.  The case involved serious allegations of gross misconduct in the context of child protection procedures.
• O’Reilly v Mitchells & Butler (High Court)
  Represented the Defendant in a claim brought by a psychic for discrimination in the supply of goods and services on the grounds of religion and belief.
• Advised in relation to the issue of TUPE proceedings against a charity, and the interpretation of the insolvency provisions in regulation 8 of TUPE in the context of the dissolution of a charitable trust.

Prior to coming to the Bar Naina’s work focused on the role of law in post-conflict reconstruction efforts.  After leaving university, she researched comparative access to justice and its human rights implications across the developing world for the British Institute of International and Comparative Law.  While at Harvard, Naina spent a year teaching international human rights with Professor Michael Ignatieff.  Thereafter, Naina worked for organisations including the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development in Afghanistan, the United Nations Development Program and the charity International Rescue Committee, advising on furthering local and national economic objectives through human-rights-promoting development programming.  This work has taken her to Rwanda, Kosovo, Azerbaijan and Afghanistan.

Naina’s interests in legal reform and development are now reflected in her regular involvement in legal and judicial training both in the UK and overseas.  During 2007-2008, Naina worked with the Bar Human Rights Committee, funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to train judges, lawyers, activists and academics throughout Afghanistan on international human rights standards, for which her team was awarded the Bar Pro Bono Award 2008.  Since then, she has also worked with lawyers from Russian and Georgia and Armenia in conjunction with the European Human Rights Advocacy Centre and the British East West Centre. She has recently returned from a sabbatical year working as Senior Justice Adviser to the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Helmand, Afghanistan, leading justice reform in the province.

Scholarships and Prizes:

• Bar Pro Bono Award 2008
• Princess Royal Scholarship (Inner Temple, 2004)
• Thesis Award (Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, Harvard, 2004)
• Harvard International Development Award (Center for International Development, Harvard, 2003)
• Major Scholarship (Inner Temple, 2002)
• Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award (Inner Temple, 2002)
• Fulbright Scholarship (US-UK Fulbright Commission, 2002)
• Coolidge Award (Balliol College, Oxford, 2001)
• Paton Scholarship (Balliol College, Oxford, 2001)
• Fletcher Exhibition (Balliol College, Oxford, 2000)

Publications:

• Lester, Pannick and Herberg: Human Rights Law and Practice published by LexisNexis Butterworths (2009): chapters on Article 5 and Article 9 of the ECHR, and Wales.
• UK case section of Sweet & Maxwell’s Human Rights Alerter: from May 2008 to May 2009.
• Tolley’s Discrimination in Employment Handbook published by LexisNexis Butterworths (2007): chapters on Religion and Belief and Marital Status 
• “State Immunity and the UN Convention: A Practitioner’s View” [2007] Int.T.L.R. 1, with Shaheed Fatima
• “Understanding IRC Approaches from Relief to Post-Conflict: Community-Driven Reconstruction” with Lizanne McBride, International Rescue Committee, 2005, presented at the World Bank/USAID Conference on Community-Based Development in Fragile/Conflict Affected Environments, 26-28 October 2005, Washington DC
• “Building on the Foundations of NSP: Developing a Viable and Effective Framework for Local Government in Afghanistan”, John F Kennedy School of Government, June 2004

Other Information:

VAT registration number:  885681076