Natasha Barnes

Public Law

Natasha advises and acts for a range of government and private clients across a wide spectrum of administrative and public law. She is a member of the Attorney General’s B Panel.

Selected Cases

• Legal challenge to MI5 agents engaging in criminal activity (ongoing).
• GA v SSHD (2020): Unled for SSHD in claim to review refusal of British Citizenship on the basis of terrorist associations.
• Carr v Secretary of State for Justice (2020): Judicial review of decision not to relax claimant’s prison conditions brought. Appeared unled for Secretary of State. Challenge dismissed.
• R (Saifullah) v Ministry of Defence (2020): challenge to adequacies of the investigation into the killing of four Afghan nationals by British armed forces in 2011.
• R v SSHD [2019] EWHC 1772 (Admin): Junior counsel in high profile litigation challenging the use of children as informants in criminal investigations, known as ‘child spies.’
• R (TN & US) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 2838: Junior Counsel in joined lead cases concerning the lawfulness of the Detained Fast Track Rules 2005. 10,000 appeals were heard under the Rules. Appeal and judicial review claim dismissed, currently on appeal to the Supreme Court (2020).
• R (NM) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWHC 2798 (Admin): Sole counsel in a complex trafficking claim involving a 3-day hearing before the High Court.
• R (Nawaz) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] UKUT 288 (IAC): Sole counsel in a Judicial Review challenge arising out of the ETS language testing fraud.
• R (Siddique) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2016] EWCA Civ 570: Sole counsel in proceedings before the Court of Appeal. Natasha successfully argued that the Secretary of State acted lawfully in refusing to issue an appealable removal decision to the Appellant. The Court of Appeal praised parties’ ‘helpful and realistic’ submissions.