M E O (NIGERIA) v The International Protection Appeals Tribunal

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Judge: O'Donnell J.,Dunne J.,Charleton J.
• Judgment Date: 08 July 2019
• Neutral Citation: [2019] IESCDET 165
• Court: Supreme Court
• Date: 08 July 2019

[2019] IESCDET 165

An Chúirt Uachtarach

The Supreme Court

DETERMINATION

O'Donnell J.

Dunne J.

Charleton J.

BETWEEN

M E O (NIGERIA)

APPLICANT

AND

THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION APPEALS TRIBUNAL THE MINISTER FOR JUSTICE AND EQUALITY IRELAND

AND

THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

RESPONDENTS

APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO APPEAL TO WHICH ARTICLE 34.5.4° OF THE CONSTITUTION APPLIES

RESULT: The Court does not grant leave to the Applicant to appeal to this Court directly from the High Court.

COURT: High Court

DATE OF JUDGMENT OR RULING: 7 th December, 2018

DATE OF ORDER: 7 th December, 2018 and 25 February 2019

DATE OF PERFECTION OF ORDER: 11 December 2018 and 25 th February, 2019

THE APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO APPEAL WAS MADE ON 19 th March, 2019 AND WAS NOT IN TIME.

1 This determination concerns a decision of the High Court of 7 December 2018 whereby the applicant's judicial review of a decision of the International Protection Appeals Tribunal was dismissed, and the subsequent refusal to grant a Certificate for Leave to Appeal to the Court of Appeal, as provided for in s 5(3)(a) of the Illegal Immigrants Trafficking Act 2000, by order of that Court dated 25 February 2019. The proceedings before the High Court were joined with another applicant, U.O., who raised an almost identical challenge. This other party has also sought leave to appeal to this Court, and is the subject of a separate determination, [2019] IESCDET 166. This determination should be read in conjunction with that.

2 The applicant is a Nigerian national who arrived in the state in June 2014 on false papers and was arrested and detained for a period of time. Claiming persecution or serious harm by reason of his sexual orientation in his home country, he applied for asylum on 13 June 2014. This application was refused by the Refugee Applications Commissioner on 19 January 2015. This decision was appealed to the Refugee Appeals Tribunal on 3 February 2015. He also sought subsidiary protection, which was rejected by the International Protection Office on 15 June 2017. This refusal was appealed to the International Protection Appeals Tribunal on 13 August 2017. His appeals were refused on 3 April 2018. The applicant was granted leave to seek certiorari in relation to the decision of the International Protection Appeals Tribunal on 3 May 2018. It is this decision that formed the basis of his judicial review proceedings and is at issue in this determination.

3 The veracity of the applicant's claim to be of a sexual orientation that is problematic in Nigeria was called into question by the IPAT and the application was subsequently refused. The decision of the IPAT at paragraph 4.25 notes that the applicant's ‘account… was lacking in detail. Core facts relating to his sexuality were inconsistent, majorly so.’ No comment as to the credibility or validity of the applicant's claim will be made in this determination. This application for leave to appeal focuses on the standard of proof that should be applied in claims relating to international protection.

4 The applicant initiated judicial review proceedings in 2018. These, along with the aforementioned joined matter, were heard before Humphreys J in the High Court. The applicant argued that the correct standard of proof in cases such as this is ‘a reasonable degree of likelihood’ or a ‘reasonable chance’ as opposed to the civil standard of the balance of probabilities, or indeed the balance of probabilities with the benefit of the doubt being extended to the applicant. The legal basis for this...