A. AND OTHERS v. THE UNITED KINGDOM JUDGMENT
1
In the case of A. and Others v. the United Kingdom,
The European Court of Human Rights, sitting as a Grand Chamber
composed of:
Jean-Paul Costa, President,
Christos Rozakis,
Nicolas Bratza,
Françoise Tulkens,
Josep Casadevall,
Giovanni Bonello,
Ireneu Cabral Barreto,
Elisabeth Steiner,
Lech Garlicki,
Khanlar Hajiyev,
Ljiljana Mijović,
Egbert Myjer,
Davíd Thór Björgvinsson,
George Nicolaou,
Ledi Bianku,
Nona Tsotsoria,
Mihai Poalelungi, judges,
and Michael O’Boyle, Deputy Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 21 May 2008 and on 4 February 2009,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on the lastmentioned date:
PROCEDURE
1. The case originated in an application (no. 3455/05) against the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland lodged with the Court under
Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and
Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by eleven non-United Kingdom
nationals (“the applicants”), on 21 January 2005. The President acceded to
the applicants’ request not to have their names disclosed (Rule 47 § 3 of the
Rules of Court).
2. The applicants were represented by Birnberg Peirce and Partners, a
firm of solicitors practising in London. The United Kingdom Government
(“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mr D. Walton,
Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
3. The applicants alleged, in particular, that they had been unlawfully
detained, in breach of Articles 3, 5 § 1 and 14 of the Convention and that
they had not had adequate remedies at their disposal, in breach of Articles 5
§ 4 and 13 of the Convention.