Lords a-leaping

Ceredigion County Council v Jones and others [2007] UKHL 24; SJ 25 May; NLJ 1 June

After a non-statutory panel had found that Ceredigion County Council was not obliged to pay the travel costs of children who attended a school in another local authority, the affected children applied to the High Court and obtained an order in their favour. The judge granted Ceredigion permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal, which granted a certificate under s12 of the Administration of Justice Act 1969 permitting Ceredigion to ask the House of Lords for leave to appeal direct to it, thereby leapfrogging the Court of Appeal and avoiding a tier of costs on the grounds that the case raised a point of law of general public importance. The House of Lords Appellate Committee allowed permission for a direct appeal on the interpretation of one of the provisions of the Education Act 1996, on condition that Ceredigion paid the claimants’ costs of the appeal whatever the outcome. Ceredigion chose to withdraw its appeal to the Lords and gave notice of appeal to the Court of Appeal. Having invoked the leapfrogging provisions, could an applicant later revert to the lower court after the Lords had considered its application?