Eleanor Mitchell

Contact Eleanor: eleanormitchell@matrixlaw.co.uk | +44 (0)20 7404 3447

Contact Eleanor's Practice Team (Team X): TeamX@matrixlaw.co.uk

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Eleanor joined Matrix in 2016. Her practice focuses on public law, human rights and equality law.

She regularly provides advice and representation across areas including immigration (asylum and protection appeals, unlawful detention claims, claims on behalf of victims of trafficking, and wider systemic and policy challenges); education (including both applications for judicial review and appeals relating to all aspects of Education Health and Care Plans); equality and discrimination (under both the European Convention and the Equality Act); community care; and prison law.

Eleanor has been instructed in matters at all levels up to the Supreme Court, and appears regularly in the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the Tribunals, as well as before administrative bodies such as Independent Review Panels.

Eleanor also has specialist knowledge and experience of international human rights and humanitarian law. She advises non-government organisations on legal aspects of their advocacy and policy work, and has been involved in applications and interventions before the European Court of Human Rights and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.

Eleanor’s recent work includes:

R (Vanriel) and R (Tumi) v SSHD [2021] EWHC 3415 (Admin) – a successful Thlimmenos challenge to the Secretary of State’s refusal of citizenship to members of the Windrush generation who were unable to satisfy the relevant requirements due to past failures by the State (led by Chris Buttler QC). A Joint Opinion, commissioned by Freedom from Torture, on the compliance of the Government’s “New Plan for Immigration” with the UK’s international legal obligations (led by Raza Husain QC and Jason Pobjoy). DN (Rwanda) v SSHD [2020] AC 698 – a Supreme Court intervention on behalf of Bail for Immigration Detainees in an important case concerning the application of the Lumba test for unlawful detention to cases involving sequential decision-making. R (Humnynstkyi) v SSHD [2020] EWHC 1912 (Admin) – a successful challenge to the Secretary of State’s policy framework for allocating Schedule 10 bail accommodation to Foreign National Offenders (led by Laura Dubinsky). R (CRA & ors) v Lord Chancellor – a challenge to hasty changes to the Legal Aid scheme governing statutory immigration appeals to the First-tier Tribunal, resulting (in September 2020) in an acknowledgement that the changes had been unlawfully made and the introduction of hourly rates pending further consultation (led by Chris Buttler). R (Bloomsbury Institute Ltd) v Office for Students [2020] EWCA Civ 1074 – a successful challenge to the Office for Students’ approach to the regulation of higher education institutions (led by Jessica Simor QC and Chris Buttler). R (FR) v SSHD – a successful challenge to a Reasonable Grounds decision, resulting in the Secretary of State accepting that forced labour for the purposes of terrorism is not excluded from the scope of modern slavery (led by Phillippa Kaufmann QC).

Public Law

Eleanor’s practice covers a wide spectrum of public law matters. In addition to the specialist fields below (including immigration, education and equality law), she has particular experience with claims raising issues of access to justice. Recent cases include: R (SM) v Lord Chancellor [2021] 1 WLR 3815 – an intervention on behalf of Bail for Immigration Detainees in a successful challenge to the Legal Aid Agency’s discriminatory arrangements for the provision of publicly funded advice and representation to immigration detainees in the prison estate (led by Laura Dubinsky). R (CRA & ors) v Lord Chancellor– a challenge to hasty changes to the Legal Aid scheme governing statutory immigration appeals to the First-tier Tribunal, resulting (in September 2020) in an acknowledgement that the changes had been unlawfully made and the introduction of hourly rates pending further consultation (led by Chris Buttler). R (Duncan Lewis (Solicitors) Ltd) v Director of Legal Aid Casework – a challenge to the lawfulness of the LAA’s refusal to backdate grants of funding, which prompted the introduction of new backdating powers from February 2019 (led by Chris Buttler). R (Good Law Project) v Electoral Commission [2019] 1 All ER 365 – a successful challenge to the Electoral Commission’s interpretation of the expenses and donations framework governing the EU Referendum (led by Jessica Simor QC).

Immigration

Eleanor provides advice and representation in a wide range of immigration-related matters, and is regularly instructed in legally complex cases at the cutting edge of domestic and international law. Her work includes: asylum and protection claims, including legally complex protection appeals at all levels up to the Supreme Court; unlawful detention, particularly on behalf of vulnerable detainees and in cases raising wider systemic issues. removal and deportation challenges; immigration bail; segregation in immigration detention; human trafficking and modern slavery; family reunification; accommodation and support for asylum-seekers and victims of trafficking; and indefinite leave to remain and citizenship. As well as acting for claimants and appellants, Eleanor represents organisations intervening in significant cases, including the recent Supreme Court proceedings in DN (Rwanda) v SSHD [2020] AC 698 (for Bail for Immigration Detainees, on the application of the Lumba test for unlawful detention to cases involving sequential decision-making) and MS (Pakistan) v SSHD [2020] 1 WLR 1373  (for ECPAT UK, on the significance of Article 4 ECHR to appeals in the Immigration Tribunals) (led by Raza Husain QC). Eleanor also advises expert non-government organisations in relation to the legal aspects of their work: for example, she was a joint author of the widely publicised opinion commissioned by Freedom from Torture regarding the compliance of the Government’s “New Plan for Immigration” with the UK’s international legal obligations (led by Raza Husain QC and Jason Pobjoy). Eleanor has experience managing urgent and out-of-hours applications and pursuing civil claims for false imprisonment. Eleanor’s other recent cases include: NB and AB v SSHD (Case C-349/20) – an ongoing case before the CJEU in relation to the rights of Palestinian refugees under the Qualification Directive and the Refugee Convention (led by Raza Husain QC). R (Kaitey) v SSHD [20201] EWCA Civ 1875 – an intervention on behalf of Bail for Immigration detainees in the leading case on the scope of bail powers under the Immigration Act 2016 (led by Laura Dubinsky). R (HY) v SSHD [2021] EWHC 2404 (Admin) – claims on behalf of asylum-seekers accommodated in hotels who had been subjected to unlawful restrictions on their movements during the Covid lockdowns. After successfully securing interim relief which caused the restrictions to be lifted, the claims were transferred to the QBD for consideration of the resulting allegations of false imprisonment and breaches of human rights (led by Laura Dubinsky). Sanambar v SSHD [2021] 1 WLR 3847 – an appeal to the Supreme Court concerning the European and domestic legal framework governing the deportation of migrants who have spent most or all of their life lawfully in the UK (led by Raza Husain QC). R (FR) v SSHD– a successful challenge to a Reasonable Grounds decision, resulting in the Secretary of State accepting that forced labour for the purposes of terrorism is not excluded from the scope of modern slavery (led by Phillippa Kaufmann QC). R (Humnynstkyi) v SSHD[2020] EWHC 1912 (Admin)– a successful challenge to the Secretary of State’s policy framework for allocating Schedule 10 bail accommodation to Foreign National Offenders (led by Laura Dubinsky). SSHD v JS (Uganda)[2020] 1 WLR 43 – an important appeal concerning the UK’s international legal obligations to “family reunion” refugees (led by Raza Husain QC).

Education

Eleanor advises and represents clients in matters concerning educational provision, school exclusions, discrimination, admissions, and special educational needs. Her work includes applications for judicial review, civil claims, and hearings before Governing Bodies and Independent Review Panels. Recent cases have involved issues such as breach of the right to education, the relationship between fixed-term and permanent exclusion, and unlawful progression policies. Eleanor regularly represents clients in appeals concerning all aspects of Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), and has particular experience working with parents and families to challenge decisions concerning provision and placement. She also has experience of judicial reviews arising from EHCPs. In the higher and further education sectors, Eleanor has acted for Higher Education Institutions in relation to discrimination claims and judicial review proceedings, and conducted internal investigations in response to student complaints. She has also been instructed by both Ofsted and the Office of the Independent Adjudicator. Recent cases include: R (Bloomsbury Institute Ltd) v Office for Students[2020] EWCA Civ 1074 – a successful challenge to the Office for Students’ approach to the regulation of higher education institutions (led by Jessica Simor QC and Chris Buttler). R (S) v London Borough of Camden [2018] EWHC 2954 (a successful challenge to a local authority’s decision to unilaterally amend the Claimant’s ECHP). R (Learn Direct Ltd) v Ofsted[2017] EWHC 3730 (Admin) (led by Sarah Hannett) – successfully resisted a challenge to Ofsted’s inspection report on the UK’s largest provider of further education.

Equality and Discrimination

Eleanor provides advice and representation in relation to discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 and Article 14 ECHR, and compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty, across a range of contexts including primary and higher education, immigration and education policy, transportation, and service provision. Eleanor has been instructed, on both a led and an unled basis, by individuals and families, non-government organisations, Higher Education Institutions, statutory bodies, and government departments. She is a member of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s panel of counsel. Recent cases include: R (Vanriel) and R (Tumi) v SSHD [2021] EWHC 3415 (Admin) – a successful Thlimmenos challenge to the Secretary of State’s refusal of citizenship to members of the Windrush generation who were unable to satisfy the relevant requirements due to past failures by the State (led by Chris Buttler QC). R (SM) v Lord Chancellor [2021] 1 WLR 3815 – an intervention on behalf of Bail for Immigration Detainees in a successful challenge to the Legal Aid Agency’s discriminatory arrangements for the provision of legally aided advice and representation to immigration detainees in the prison estate (led by Laura Dubinsky).

Community Care and Social Welfare

Eleanor has been instructed in a range of matters concerning: support under s 17 of the Children Act 1989; placement decisions under Part III of the Children Act; transfer of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children under the Interim National Protocol; support under the Care Act; and after-care services under s 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983. Eleanor recently acted for the claimants in several Upper Tribunal appeals selected as lead cases for the determination of issues concerning the exportability of benefits arising from the judgment of the CJEU in Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v Tolley (C-430/15), and in the subsequent appeal to the Court of Appeal (led by Tim Buley QC): Konevod v SSWP [2020] EWCA Civ 809.

Prison Law

Eleanor acts in and advises on challenges to Parole Board decisions; challenges to classification/categorisation decisions; and civil claims on behalf of prisoners under the Human Rights Act 1998.

Public International Law and Human Rights

Eleanor has a strong background in PIL and human rights, having completed her MPhil thesis at Oxford in refugee and human rights law and worked for a year with the Legal Division of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Eleanor’s practice in these areas has included: co-authoring a Joint Opinion, commissioned by Freedom from Torture, on the compliance of the Government’s “New Plan for Immigration” with the UK’s international legal obligations (led by Raza Husain QC and Jason Pobjoy); acting in cases raising contested issues of international refugee law, including in relation to internal relocation (SC (Jamaica) v SSHD), Palestinian refugees (NB and AB v SSHD (Case C-349/20)), and “family reunion” refugees (SSHD v JS (Uganda)[2020] 1 WLR 43); advising on legal concerns arising from the Ministry of Defence’s consultation on immunity for armed services personnel (led by Richard Hermer QC); acting for the former Speaker of the Catalan Parliament in an application to the European Court of Human Rights challenging the lawfulness of her pre-trial detention (led by Jessica Simor QC); written interventions in ECtHR proceedings on issues including discriminatory ill-treatment on the basis of sex/sexual orientation (assisting the Equal Rights Trust and ILGA- Europe) and the application of Article 5(4) in the context of the preventive detention of those with a mental illness (on behalf of Liberty, led by Chris Buttler); a complaint to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women in relation to State responses to domestic violence (led by Helen Mountfield QC); advising on issues relating to compliance with international humanitarian law in the conduct of military operations abroad; advising on the human rights implications of extending the definition of combat immunity; advising on the relationship between international humanitarian law and law of the sea (led by Zachary Douglas QC); and providing advice and drafting support for appeals against the mandatory death penalty in Malaysia. Eleanor was also instructed (led by Richard Hermer QC) in the lengthy and complex proceedings in Kalma v African Minerals Ltd ([2018] EWHC 3506 (QB); [2020] EWCA Civ 144), which involved claims by a large group of Sierra Leonean villagers who suffered serious violence at the hands of local police. The first-instance proceedings involved the appointment of a High Court judge as a Special Examiner to take evidence in Sierra Leone.

Media and Information

Eleanor has experience in the areas of media and information law relating to human rights and open justice. She regularly assists in the preparation of anonymity applications across a range of public law claims. Her other work has included: Interventions in the European Court of Human Rights in relation to online defamation (Tamiz v United Kingdom, led by Guy Vassall-Adams QC) and liability for the contents of hyperlinks (Magyar Jeti Zert v Hungary, led by Jessica Simor QC). A novel and successful anonymity application on behalf of witnesses from Sierra Leone who feared reprisals for giving evidence in English proceedings: Kalma v African Minerals Ltd [2018] EWHC 120 (QB).

Previous Experience

Before joining Matrix Eleanor spent a year with the Legal Division of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, where she worked on cutting-edge issues in the interpretation and application of international humanitarian law. She was admitted to practice as a barrister and solicitor in Australia in 2011, and developed her litigation experience as a solicitor at Ashurst Australia and as a judicial assistant at the Federal Court of Australia. She has also interned with the Legal Division of the World Food Programme in Rome, where she provided advice on discrimination and employment issues, and at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague. Eleanor holds a BCL and an MPhil in Law from the University of Oxford, where her thesis focused on the relationship between human rights and refugee law in the protection of people fleeing armed conflict. Alongside her studies Eleanor served on the Executive Committee of Oxford Pro Bono Publico, coordinating an extensive comparative law project which was later drawn on by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. She speaks fluent French.

Education

MPhil in Law, Magdalen College, Oxford (Dist.) Bachelor of Civil Law, Magdalen College, Oxford (Dist.) Bachelor of Laws (Hons.), Bachelor of Arts (Politics) and Diploma in Languages (French), University of Adelaide Selected prizes University of Oxford Law Faculty Prize for International Law and Armed Conflict (2013) Law Foundation of South Australia Fellowship (2013) Sir Robert Menzies Memorial Scholarship in Law (2012) University of Adelaide Medal for outstanding academic achievement (2010) Angus Parsons Prize for the most meritorious student qualifying for the LLB (Hons.) (2010) University of Adelaide subject prizes including: Public International Law, Labour Law, Comparative Law, Corporate Law, Constitutional Law, Intellectual Property Law, Law of Crime, Law of Tort (2006-2009)

Publications

“The 2016-2017 Legal Year in Overview: Equality Law” (2017) 8 UK Supreme Court Yearbook (with Helen Mountfield QC) “Law and War in the UK Supreme Court” (2016) 7 UK Supreme Court Yearbook (with Richard Hermer QC) “The human costs and legal consequences of nuclear weapons under international law” (2016) 899 International Review of the Red Cross (with Louis Maresca) “Nuclear weapons under international law” (Book Review) (2016) 899 International Review of the Red Cross

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Eleanor's Privacy Notice

Eleanor is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. In order to provide legal services to her clients, including advice and representation services, Eleanor needs to collect and hold personal data. This includes her clients’ personal data and the personal data of others who feature in the matters in respect of which she is instructed. To read Eleanor’s privacy notice in full, please see here.

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