United Kingdom: Constitutional & Administrative Law

Gowling WLG's public law specialists examine six significant cases from Q1 2026, covering energy price control appeals, procedural fairness in proscription decisions, immigration decision corrections...

The UK Government has introduced an emergency 'visa brake' that automatically refuses visa applications from students and skilled workers from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan. Duncan Lewis Solicitors has filed a judicial review challenging this policy on behalf of three Sudanese women who secured places at prestigious UK universities but are now prevented from accessing their educational opportunities despite meeting all academic and immigration requirements.

For decades, British nationality law treated people unequally—preventing some from inheriting citizenship through their mothers or unmarried parents, while others born in identical circumstances qualified. The UK Government has now introduced a legal route allowing those affected by these historical injustices to claim the British citizenship they should have received all along.

In this July wrap up edition of the public law podcast, Jasveer Randhawa is joined by HSF Kramer partners Nusrat Zar and James Wood. They start with an update on ECHR and proportionality...

The GSMA has released a comprehensive Satellite Regulatory Playbook designed to guide governments and National Regulatory Authorities through the complexities of regulating the rapidly evolving satellite connectivity sector. This policy framework addresses the challenges faced by regulators in adapting to new satellite technologies and their integration with mobile communications networks.

Private Life applications under UK immigration law allow individuals to seek residence based on established private life ties in the UK, with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights playing a central role in determining eligibility. Understanding how Article 8's protection of private and family life intersects with Appendix Private Life requirements is crucial for applicants seeking to regularize their immigration status through this route.

In finding that it was in accordance with the law, the judgment gives helpful guidance on what framework and safeguards might be required for future use of AI by public authorities where broad discretionary powers are involved.

The UK Home Office has dramatically escalated enforcement actions against Skilled Worker sponsor licence holders, with Q1 2026 seeing an unprecedented 3,257 actions taken—affecting roughly 1 in 40 sponsors in just three months. This analysis examines the specific compliance failures driving this enforcement surge and identifies the critical steps sponsors must take to protect their licences from suspension or revocation.

Yesterday, a House of Commons select committee published its verdict on the Government's draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill — the long-awaited legislation which promises to overhaul...