Pre-Action Protocol

A Pre-Action Protocol (PAP) letter also known as a Letter Before Claim is the first step before issuing Judicial Review (JR) proceedings.

A Judicial Review challenges the lawfulness of a decision, not whether the Home Office made the “right” decision. Unlawfulness can arise, for example, through procedural unfairness, irrationality, or unreasonable delay, such as when the Home Office takes significantly longer than its own published service standards to make a decision.

If you want to challenge the merits of the decision where you believe the Home Office made a case working error or reached an incorrect outcome you may instead have grounds for an Administrative Review or a right of appeal, depending on your case type.

A judicial review, however, should only be considered as a last resort.

At Lexen Law, we draft robust PAP letters with the aim of securing an early resolution and prompting the Home Office to correct unlawful action.

A PAP letter:

In many cases, once the Home Office receives a robust and legally sound PAP, they withdraw or correct the defective decision without the need to issue Judicial Review proceedings.

We examine your situation to confirm that judicial review is the correct remedy.

We analyse the exact legal error, including:

We prepare:

If the Home Office has delayed, acted unfairly, or taken unlawful action in your case, a Pre-Action Protocol letter may be the fastest and safest way to secure justice.