Court 4 of the Royal Courts of Justice was not as busy as Obiter expected on Monday morning, given that media had to apply for a chance for a press seat. Yes, a livestream was available, but Obiter prefers being in the middle of it all.

The Lady Chief Justice flanked by four of her judicial peers gave the Court of Appeal’s judgment in the case of Huda Ammori v The Secretary of State for the Home Department. It is an important judgment – finding the government’s ban of Palestine Action was lawful.

Demonstrators gathered outside the Royal Courts, before the oral judgment at 11am, with an elevated police presence. Inside, the 19th century building was calm.

Court staff were taking names at the court door, and I had to tick my name off a list once I was at the press bench. A fellow journalist who did not follow the Ministry of Justice’s instructions was promptly told to move to the public benches when space became tight – though Obiter finds the space is tight as soon as you sit down – and only the chosen 12 were able to be there.

After the judgment was delivered, printed copies of the press summary and the judgment (145 pages, 208 paragraphs) were provided and by the time Obiter had returned to our desk, the electronic version had been published too.

It goes to show that when the courts work well, they can work seamlessly. The beauty of when things run so well is that those only seeing the end result forget about the work and effort that goes into ensuring the focus is solely on the judgment being handed down.

So this is Obiter’s humble nod to all staff in the judiciary, courts and Ministry of Justice who helped ensure a smooth oral judgment in which the lady chief justice, Master of the Rolls Sir Geoffrey Vos, Lord Justice Edis, Lord Justice Lewis and Lady Justice Whipple allowed the Home Secretary’s appeal against the Divisional Court and found the government’s proscription of Palestine Action as a terror organisation is lawful. 

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