The Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants etc) Act 2004 substantially revised the immigration appeal system, with the previous two-tier system being fused into the new Asylum and Immigration Tribunal. Where a party wishes to challenge a decision of the Tribunal, they must show it has made an 'error of law' in order to access a new review procedure. Subsequent appeal rights to the Court of Appeal are dependent on the exhaustion of these new remedies. The complexity of the legislation, and the strict new time limits, can present practitioners with real practical challenges.

This new handbook applies substantive asylum and human rights law to the difficult practical problems encountered by practitioners in the wake of the new legislation. Key areas covered include challenges to credibility and document authenticity, disputed nationality cases, Article 3 cases based on medical grounds, and certified cases.

The text covers all relevant law, practice, and procedure in a user-friendly format, and has been designed to enable best practice within the time limits of the new appellate regime. Features include tables and checklists to simplify complex legislative provisions, such as routes of appeal and review; model pleadings and skeleton arguments; and Practice Notes in each chapter, to provide an at-a-glance summary of key practical problems. In addition, extensive reference is made throughout the text to relevant current Home Office policies, such as those relating to humanitarian and discretionary leave.

Written by experienced practitioners, Asylum and Human Rights Appeals Handbook is an up-to-date and comprehensive reference tool for all lawyers and advisers who prepare appeal cases and appear before the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal.

Consultant editor: Ian Burnett QC