Justitia Chambers

Shivani Jegarajah will be moderating a debate at 1pm tomorrow (5th September) on whether Sri Lanka should be referred to the ICC for injustices against the Tamil community. See link to Webinar below:

Webinar: International Experts to Discuss Whether Sri Lanka Should be Referred to ICC - TGTE * WHEN: Thursday, September 5th. - - * TIME: New York: 8:00 am; -- UK: 1:00 pm; -- Sri Lanka 5:30 pm; -Australia (Cambara): 10:00 pm. - * WATCH LIVE: TGTE.TV

Samir Pasha made successful submissions of no case to answer before Coventry Magistrates, in a case where a Careworker, originally a trained nurse/midwife from India, was accused of punching an elderly resident whilst she was changing her pad due to soiling herself. The resident had become agitated and kicked Samir's client in the shin, and was going to spit at her.

The prosecution witnesses consisted of two care assistants who were assisting at the time but holding the resident's arm as she was prone to aggression. However, the witnesses provided inconsistent accounts of what actually occurred, and one of them was treated as hostile, with her evidence being subsequently disregarded by the prosecution themselves.

After a strong application to have the case dismissed at half time, the Bench accepted the tenuous and inconsistent nature of the evidence.

On Monday Samir Pasha secured a conditional discharge for a client accused of possessing CS pepper spray.

The client was charged with possession of a weapon for discharge of a noxious substance under section 5 Fi****ms Act 1968. The case dated back to 2021, when the client was found in possession of a CS Pepper Spray canister. After 3 years, the CPS decided to charge our client, who entered a guilty plea at Barkingside Magistrates Court.

After strong mitigation, our client was given a simple conditional discharge.

Shivani Jegarajah was granted permission at the High Court today in an extradition appeal where the District Judges had failed to make clear findings in respect of the remaining length of sentence to be served by our client, the Appellant.

Shivani was instructed by Divinah Mahendran of Raj Law Solicitors

Today at Wood Green Crown Court, the CPS offered no evidence against Samir Pasha's client who was charged with Stalking and Criminal Damage, as alleged by his ex partner.

Samir's client was formally acquitted following confirmation by the prosecutor that the complainants were not yet served with a formal witness summons, despite repeated attempts by police to contact them.

This case had been going on since November last year, with the client under a number of bail conditions which finally ceased today.

Instructed by Antonia Charles of MTC solicitors.

SHIVANI JEGARAJAH representing Tamil interests on the panel at the Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace & Justice and Retold World screening of "Anatomy of a Protest"

'Anatomy of a Protest' screened in London | Tamil Guardian The Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace & Justice (SLC), the International Working Group on Sri Lanka (IWG), and Retold World recently held a screening of the documentary film 'Anatomy of a Protest,' which took place at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in London.

Samir Pasha's client found not guilty after trial for 'butcher knife' threats:

Samir's client was charged with a s4 Public Order offence, specifically, that he threatened to kill the complainant - who was his neighbour's partner - with a butcher's knife. The incident stemmed from a neighbour dispute.

The hearing entailed tactful cross-examination of two prosecution witnesses, along with two defence witnesses. After the Court had heard the 999 call and live evidence plus seen the arrest video, Samir argued that there was an issue of credibility of the prosecution witnesses, namely, various inconsistencies in the evidence.

After a lengthy trial at Willesden Magistrates today, the Court was unsure whether any criminal offence had been committed and proceeded to find Samir's client not guilty. The client is a young man going through a graduate scheme to become a business analyst. In a packed courtroom, the client was elated to be able to continue building his future.

Instructed by MTC Solicitors.

Kim Renfrew secured a grant of permission to appeal from the Court of Appeal in second application on behalf of a Sri Lankan asylum seeker.

Lord Justice Singh granted permission to appeal on all grounds, considering it arguable that the UT had erred in affirming the FTT’s decision in light of “the raft of errors” made by the FTT, the cumulative effect of which arguably deprived the Appellant of a fair hearing.

Kim was instructed by Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors

Samir Pasha's client was charged with being involved in the supply of 51kg co***ne, with a value of over £6 million. Samir's client was charged along with two other co-defendants, one had already pleaded guilty and the other was found guilty by the jury.

After a hard-fought trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court and almost 4 days of deliberation, the jury were unable to return a verdict on Samir's client, resulting in a hung jury. The Prosecution sought a retrial, which will take place in 2026.

This case was part of a huge, complex police operation relating to a consignment of 51kg of co***ne concealed inside the fuel tank of a lorry. The Prosecution case relied heavily on surveillance and cell site data, requiring technical knowledge to be navigated through in high value drugs trials.

Instructed by Daniel Ankama of MTC Solicitors

Shivani Jegarajah and Evin Atas were successful in three appeals recently on behalf of direct access clients in the Immigration Tribunals:

The first was in relation to twin babies, Syrian refugees in Lebanon, appealing against the Home Office decision to refuse Entry Clearance under a Family Reunion application for them to join their mother in UK. The Home Office withdrew its objections on the day of the hearing based on a DNA report.

Second was an appeal on behalf of another Syrian refugee in Turkey. The Appellant had applied for a Family Reunion visa to join the rest of her family in the UK, all of whom had already been granted asylum. Despite the Appellant not meeting the usual criteria, after Shivani Jegarajah's submissions, the Judge granted the appeal on compelling and compassionate grounds.

Thirdly, after Representations by Evin Atas, the Home office granted extensions to the visas of a whole family on compassionate grounds because their daughter suffers from a genetic disorder and is reliant on medical treatment only available in the UK.

Both Counsel were assisted by our Associate, Jahnzaib Sarwar who initially met with the clients, completed their applications and did much of the preparation for all three cases.

The Immigration Tribunal allowed an Appeal on the spot for Evin Atas and Kim Renfrew’s direct access client. All appeal preparation was done by Counsel. The Judge said he did not need to hear submissions for the Appellant and confirmed the appeal would be allowed at the hearing. The appeal concerned a challenge to the Entry Clearance Officer’s decision to refuse entry to a child (now a young adult), where sole responsibility and adequate maintenance were disputed.

Samir Pasha secures a simple fine for client charged with drug dealing

Samir Pasha's secures a simple fine for a client charged with Possession with Intent to Supply Class B - Cannabis, from allegations dating back to 2022.

After reviewing the case material and providing strong mitigation submissions, Samir's client was given a simple fine by way of sentence at St Albans Magistrates Court.

Instructed by Antonia Kim Charles and Adam Abo-El-Ella Solicitors

Samir Pasha secured a suspended sentence for a dangerous driving client at Inner London Crown Court last Thursday.

Amongst other motoring offences, details of the dangerous driving included driving at speeds of up to 70mph in the City of London. The client had numerous previous convictions for driving-related offences and was given a custodial sentence which was subsequently suspended.

The Court confirmed that the custodial threshold was passed however, following strong mitigation by Samir, the Court decided to suspend the 26 weeks' prison sentence and impose a community order requiring unpaid work and rehabilitation activity.

The Prosecution offered no evidence at Isleworth Crown Court today against Samir Pasha's client charged with Supply of Class A drugs (co***ne).

The client was jointly charged with another as part of a police investigation into exportation and conspiracy to supply almost 2kg of class A drugs. The Prosecution relied on cell site data against Samir's client, which allegedly showed him travelling around the country with his co-defendant.

Samir meticulously analysed the cell site evidence and made an application to dismiss the charge against his client. In response, the Prosecution decided to offer no evidence thereby formally acquitting his client.

Instructed by Milan Charles-Shim-Hue at MTC Solicitors.

Samir Pasha's client charged with s20 GBH was today sentenced to 18 months imprisonment at Liverpool Crown Court. The case concerned an altercation outside a bar in Liverpool during the Champions League Final in 2022.

Samir put forward strong mitigation on behalf of his client who had a number of previous convictions and is currently serving a prison sentence for a separate offence. Such cases require careful consideration of the factors to determine the appropriate sentence.

Samir was able to provide strategic advice and guidance in this serious case from the beginning and put forward submissions in the sentencing hearing that were appreciated by the sentencing Judge.

Instructed by Daniel Ankama of MTC Solicitors.

Prosecution offered no evidence today against Samir Pasha's client who was charged with Possession of Indecent Photographs of a Child.

The client was charged with having been in possession of 2 x Category A videos that he received via WhatsApp, one video going back to 2017. The client maintained that he had never seen the videos as they were in old group chats that he did not access but remained part of the chat group.

An expert report was obtained and strong representations were made which highlighted that if a message has a 'Read' status, it does not necessarily mean that the message has been viewed by the recipient. Furthermore, if a user has set his WhatsApp settings to 'Auto Download' media, then any media received will automatically be saved onto the phone's internal memory, whether the recipient has viewed that media file or not.

This case had caused huge distress to the client and his family and, if found guilty, he could have been given a serious custodial sentence along with notification requirements as part of being on the s*x offenders register.

It also underlines the importance of expert evidence when cases concerning s*xual offences are said to have occurred digitally via phone messaging or social media platforms.

Instructed by Naga Kandiah and Antonia Charles , assisted by Adam Abo-El-Ella of MTC Solicitors.

Samir Pasha secures formal acquittal in co***ne supply case:

The Prosecution offered no evidence in a case against Samir's client who was charged with Possession with Intent to Supply Class A drugs, at Northampton Crown Court today. The client was charged with possession and supply of 120 wraps of co***ne following a search warrant being executed by police at a property in Kettering in January 2022.

Following a positive conclusive grounds decision by the Single Competent Authority that our client was a victim of modern slavery, representations were made and the CPS decided not to proceed to trial.

Samir was instructed by Antonia Charles of MTC Solicitors, assisted by Adam Abo-El-Ella

Evin Atas successfully represented an Iranian client recently at the Upper Tribunal which upheld the First-tier Tribunal’s decision to allow the Appellant’s deportation appeal on Article 3 grounds on the basis that he will be at risk on return to Iran owing to his anti-regime political activities in the UK.

Kim Renfrew, appearing as a sole junior, successfully represented the Claimant in a two-day unlawful detention trial in the High Court. The Claimant was found to have been unlawfully detained for 60 days and was awarded £20,000 in damages.

The Claimant's case concerned a period of detention in Brook House in 2016. The Judge found “The effect on him was serious, the conditions appalling and he told me of the long-lasting effects on him.” It was accepted that the Claimant’s asylum claim had been unlawfully certified by the Home Office and, due to an inadequate detention review, his detention was “wholly unnecessarily and unreasonably extended by the Defendant’s failures for a period of 60 days.”

The Judge commented that both Kim and Counsel for the Defendant “cooperatively worked together, presented their cases ably and professionally and provided me with great assistance.”

The Crown Prosecution Service offered no evidence for Samir Pasha's client who was charged with Possession of a Bladed Article.

Samir's client, a university student, was charged with possession of a knife at this year's Notting Hill Carnival in London, which was found in his bag. After strong representations being made to the Prosecution, no evidence was offered and a formal verdict of Not Guilty was entered by the Court.

Kim Renfrew has recently had two notable successes in deportation appeals:

The first was an appeal allowed on Article 3 medical grounds for a Zimbabwean national who has a serious mental health condition. The Appellant arrived in the UK as a child. The Judge accepted the Appellant met the threshold in AM (Zimbabwe) and that the SSHD had failed to dispel serious doubts raised by the evidence as to availability/accessibility of suitable treatment if he were removed.

The second was an appeal allowed against the SSHD’s decision to refuse an application to revoke a deportation order, made and enforced in 2019, with the Appellant being abroad at the time of the application. The appeal was allowed on the grounds that it had been shown the effect of deportation on the appellant’s two children was “unduly harsh.” Kim worked extensively on the appeal, attending multiple hearings and advising on the evidence. The Judge noted that her Skeleton Argument was both “detailed and helpful.”

Kim was instructed by Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors in both cases.

https://www.advisoryexcellence.com/experts/shivani-jegarajah/

Shivani Jegarajah - Advisory Excellence Shivani Jegarajah is our exclusively recommended Immigration Law expert in England on the Advisory Excellence website.

Samir Pasha today secured a conditional discharge for a landlord client who had been found guilty in an unlawful eviction case.

In a rare private prosecution brought by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, Samir's client was charged with unlawful eviction that occurred in 2020, which carries a maximum sentence of 2 years imprisonment.

This was a complex case that relied on novel points of law covering housing law and statutory defences. After a 5 day trial at Woolwich Crown Court, Samir's client was given a conditional discharge alongside a costs order.

Instructed by Antonia Kim Charles of MTC Solicitors

Samir Pasha secured bail for a client charged with Stalking, at the magistrates court on Saturday. The matter will be transferred to Crown Court alongside a charge for Criminal Damage.

Despite strong opposition from the CPS to bail, especially in Stalking cases, Samir managed to successfully persuade the bench to release the client on certain conditions. The client was already on bail for a seperate Crown Court matter and already had various convictions on his criminal record.

Samir Pasha has been instructed to advise one of the individuals charged by the International Cricket Council ("ICC") for breach of the Emirates Cricket Board's Anti-Corruption Code.

Along with allegations of match fixing against several other players, coaches and managers, the ICC has brought three seperate charges against our client in relation to the Abu Dhabi T10 Cricket League 2021.

Samir Pasha was delighted with the result of an appeal trial at Oxford Crown Court on Friday:

His client's appeal against conviction for allegedly punching her husband almost 2 years ago, was allowed. Various inconsistencies in the husband's evidence were highlighted which was ultimately key in demonstrating that the high "burden of proof" threshold was not met.

The client, a 67 year old pensioner, was in tears of joy as her almost 2-year ordeal came to a close.

Check out our newly launched website at:

Justitia Chambers | Immigration Law | London Versatile Practice, Personable Legal Services. One of the earliest virtual chambers, Justitia Chambers offers a flexible and approachable service designed to make the process as easy and simple as possible.

Congratulations to Evin Atas and Samir Pasha on their recent successes:

Evin successfully represented a client facing deportation to Zimbabwe after a 4 year custodial sentence. The FTT allowed his appeal on both Article 3 and Article 8 grounds. The Home Office applied for permission to appeal to both the FTT and the UT, however permission was refused on the papers. Fantastic result!

Samir represented a client charged with non-fatal strangulation, coercive and controlling behaviour, ABH and criminal damage. Client was alleged to have committed these offences against his partner in their home and was categorised as a 'high risk' domestic abuser. The case involved reviewing medical expert evidence on strangulation and analysing against a number of witness statements provided by the complainant. During the trial, the complainant refused to attend Court and a Res Gestae application was made by the Prosecution, successfully resisted by Samir. The case also involved making a s8 Disclosure Application before the Crown Court drawing focus on the need to obtain metadata of photographs provided by the complainant to the police. In the end, the Prosecution offered no evidence on non-fatal strangulation, coercive and controlling behaviour and criminal damage. The client accepted a plea of guilty to assault by beating and was given a community order and a fine. Great job!

Congratulations to Samir Pasha of Justitia who successfully represented a member of So Solid Crew in their motoring offence hearing at Court today. After meticulous preparation of his case and Samir's experienced advocacy and expertise, our client avoided a 6 month driving disqualification - excellent result!

Kim Renfrew has represented an appellant whose appeal against deportation was allowed on Article 8 grounds, the First-tier Tribunal Judge finding that there were "very compelling circumstances" over and above exceptions 1 and 2.

The appellant had two convictions, a sentence of four years imprisonment and a sentence of 15 months imprisonment. The Judge was satisfied that in all the circumstances of the case there were very compelling circumstances, with particular emphasis on the lasting detrimental effect deportation would have on the appellant's British children.

The Judge noted that Kim had filed a comprehensive Skeleton Argument and complimented her assistance in setting out the legal principles governing the appeal.

Kim accepts instructions in immigration, public law and regulatory matters.