Human rights

The claimants issued proceedings in tort, under the Human Rights Act 1998 and public law claims concerning their detention by British armed forces in Afghanistan and Iraq for longer than 96 hours. The judge’s findings included that the act of state defence applied to the tort claims. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, held that the application of the act of state defence required compelling considerations of public policy which would require the court to deny a claim in tort founded on an act of the executive performed abroad.