Select Page

If a first responder or front-line worker is unsure whether a duty of trust would be breached if they refer a case to the police, they should contact their organization`s legal counsel for further advice. The victim must consider evidence that he or she has not yet submitted to the competent authority that may support his or her case in order to be identified as a victim and to obtain discretionary permission to remain a victim. They can seek advice from an immigration lawyer if they want to know more about their right to reside in the UK. Victims may not identify as victims and may not want to talk to authorities or be formally referred for support. They are often suspicious of authorities and their legal representatives. A support provider or first responder is not required to honour this request or provide reasons for not requesting reconsideration. If a legal representative or non-governmental organisation outside the NRM requests a review from the competent authority, it must be informed that: The Ministry of Interior even told us that it would not re-examine a case if one of its own case handling teams wished to refer the client to the NRM, as the Ministry of the Interior was not the initial first responder. even if they were first responders themselves (although they later admitted that they would revisit the issue after a pre-action letter). There is no automatic legal aid to compensate for offences. The party`s director of legal services, Oscar Kihika, said that after dealing with the president`s petitions in 2006 and 2016, it was wise to be vigilant and plan ahead, just in case a petition was filed. There is no automatic right to legal aid to help a person who “only” goes through the MNR and is identified as a victim or if he or she has to apply to the MNR (unless this can be covered in another case, e.g. asylum – if modern slavery is linked to the asylum application). Child victims of human trafficking need special protection and, as legal professionals, you have an important role to play in protecting the rights of child victims.

In addition, when representing child victims, you must respect the rules of client confidentiality and professional secrecy. Therefore, in all cases where it is not clear whether a person is under 18, they should be treated as a child. If an age assessment shows that they are adults, children should receive free legal advice to quickly challenge this age determination. A potential victim of human trafficking is referred to the NRM team, which then makes a decision about whether a person has been trafficked. It is important that lawyers representing a child who has been or may have been a victim of human trafficking use this procedure to ensure that they are not unfairly prosecuted for criminal behaviour resulting from trafficking, slavery or exploitation of the child. The victim should receive financial support, receive shelter when they need it, and have access to free medical care. If they need legal advice about their immigration options, including their right to apply for leave as a victim of modern slavery at their discretion, they should seek a lawyer to help them now before making a final decision on their identification as victims. Legal representatives are not the first responders in the national referral mechanism.

There is also no automatic legal aid to assist a victim of modern slavery to apply for an entry or residence permit before receiving a reasoned or final positive decision. However, you should familiarize yourself with the referral form, even if you do not deal with the case until later. The guidelines to the competent authorities oblige them to ensure that all allegations are referred to the police. This is done either to the police where the alleged exploitation took place, to the National Anti-Trafficking Unit (Scotland), or to the Criminal and Financial Investigation Team of the Home Office (which includes seconded police officers). A lawyer can advise on this subject in the context of legal aid. Look for an immigration or “public” lawyer. It is important to act quickly and any legal proceedings must be initiated no later than 3 months after the date of the contested decision. The NRM team has a target date of five business days from receipt of the referral to determine whether there are reasonable grounds to believe that the person is a potential victim of human trafficking. This may include obtaining additional information from the first responder or from specialised NGOs, social services or the person`s legal representative. Modern slavery has no formal legal definition. This is an umbrella term used to describe a number of illegal activities, including: When Robert Kyagulanyi, Museveni`s closest candidate, was tried on February 1, 2021, the legal team at the NRM Secretariat was ready to defend itself against the allegations. A victim can apply for extraordinary legal aid (discretionary legal aid) to obtain a free lawyer if they want free advice before going to the NRM.

You can read more about this process here. If the victim is your client, you must report the results of these investigations to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the courts if necessary, although the rules of solicitor-client privilege and solicitor-client privilege continue to apply and potential difficulties may arise if they are not accepted. The Home Office guidelines do not reflect the views of the immigration court. In the case of TD and AD (trafficked women) CG [2016] UKUT 00092 (IAC). The High Court stated that a legal representative may draw the attention of the competent authority to relevant matters. The decision spoke of the government`s compliance with its commitments outside of its policy: if a first responder or support provider wishes to provide additional evidence or expresses specific concerns that the decision is not consistent with published guidelines, the competent authority should consider reconsidering the decision. This is not a formal right of appeal and the decision should only be reviewed if necessary. This informal agreement does not extend to other parties such as legal advisers and non-governmental organizations outside the NRM. However, these third parties may ask a support provider or first responder involved in the case to request a reconsideration. Legal aid is available for certain types of compensation counselling, and a victim does not need to go through the NRM to receive this legal aid advice. 135.

We add that we have heard some arguments as to who should bring new information and evidence to the attention of the Minister of State. We were referred to various policy statements suggesting that such referrals can only be made by actors such as the “first responder” or “support provider”. Where such policy documents exist, parties risk sticking to them so literally that they lose sight of common sense. If a reference is made by a “first responder” or a “support provider”, that is fine. This does not prevent any other professional, whether a legal representative, a social worker or a doctor, from drawing the defendant`s attention to relevant issues; If such a referral is received outside the framework of the respondent`s policy, international obligations are assumed. [emphasis added] However, the Ministry of the Interior will not accept a request for review from a legal representative. Lawyers may be able to support a request for reconsideration through representations, but from the Home Office`s perspective, they cannot be the primary channel for this. The competent authority will not distribute copies of the NRM documentation to workers or legal representatives (or applicants), even with a signed authority. These must be requested via a subject access request. “The `reasonable grounds` test has a low threshold and is below the threshold required for prima facie case (which is legally sufficient evidence which, if challenged, would establish a fact or give rise to a presumption of fact). The test that should be applied is whether the statement “I suspect but do not prove” would be true and whether a reasonable person would consider that, based on the information contained in the decision-maker`s mind, there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the person concerned has been trafficked.

He says the legal team is doing everything it needs to do and is waiting for more evidence from the NUP National Unit Platform so they can prepare their response. The structure of the investigation and the type of registration are almost identical to those of an investigation in an application for protection. This guide explains how first responders must complete the referral form before it is reviewed by the competent authority of the Ministry of the Interior. See TDT v. SSHD [2018] EWCA Civ1395, where judicial review proceedings were initiated in the absence of the client. There is no obligation of confidentiality between the competent authorities and the victim, as this information was obtained through a third party. Competent authorities are therefore entitled to process this information in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK General Data Protection Regulation and to pass this information on to the police to assist in the detection and prevention of crime. The competent authorities do not require the consent of the victim.

This is planned to be done in all cases referred to the NRM where there has not yet been a referral by the police. Unfortunately, the High Court did not agree and ruled that a lawyer could not succeed with an application for reconsideration in OA (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWHC 681 (Admin). A potential victim of modern slavery is a potential victim of a crime.