After Dillon, What Next?

A recent Supreme Court decision might have an important impact in other policy areas.

In the most recent episode of the podcast, we discussed a hugely important decision about the Troubles, Brexit and Northern Ireland. As well as listening to the episode here you can also read more of my thoughts in a previous edition of the newsletter.

The proceedings turned on an interpretation of the Windsor framework. Whereas the lower courts offered a broader, rights-based interpretation of the legislation, the Supreme Court drastically toned things down and limited the avenues available for people seeking to enforce their rights.

In my own analysis, I describe this as symptomatic of the conservative tendencies of the Lord Reed Supreme Court. Writing for the Constitutional Law Blog, Colin Murray rejected that assessment and instead argued that the Supreme Court “has demonstrated that it is not a conservative court. Anything but. It is a radically regressive body where rights protections are at issue.”

Now that the highest court in the land has offered precedent-setting clarity, time will show which understanding is correct as other proceedings make their way through the courts.