The Court of Appeal is today hearing the appeal in SSHD v Okafor

The Court of Appeal is today hearing the appeal in SSHD V Okafor. The appeal raises the scope of the “Boucherau exception” in EU deportation cases which the Court has identified as an important point of principle.

Ordinarily, in EU deportation cases, in order for the SSHD to establish that a person presents a “genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat affecting the fundamental interests of society”, he must show that there is a likelihood of reoffending. However, in Boucherau, Case C-30/77, the CJEU held that in exceptional cases, “past conduct alone may constitute such a threat”. The Advocate General in Boucherau stated that the such a case would be exceptional, and would be a case where the conduct “has caused such deep public revulsion that public policy requires his departure”.
The Court of Appeal has previously said that such a case would be an “extreme case”.

One of the key issues before the Court of Appeal today is whether deception in immigration applications could, in combination with previous serious criminal offending, amount to such an exceptional case.

Mr Zainul Jafferji and Mr Arif Rehman of Clarendon Park Chambers are representing the Respondent Okafor, instructed by Riverway Law.