Selection of Tribunal Members

GEOFFREY REYNOLDS made this Freedom of Information request to HM Courts and Tribunals Service This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, HM Courts and Tribunals Service should have responded by now (details). You can complain by requesting an internal review.

GEOFFREY REYNOLDS

Dear Her Majesty’s Courts and the Tribunals Service,

Your service purports to be "independent". Could you please tell me if persons with links to ATOS or the DWP have ever sat on a tribunal bench when adjudicating on "ANY" type of benefit claim?

Furthermore; who selects the members of the bench at a benefit claim and what scrutiny is given to ensure "independence" is adhered to?

Yours faithfully,

GEOFFREY REYNOLDS

Data Access & Compliance Unit, HM Courts and Tribunals Service

Dear Mr Reynolds,

Thank you for your e-mail, I am writing to advise you that your enquiry does not fall under the Freedom of Information regime and will be treated by the department as Official Correspondence.

It may be helpful if I explain that the Freedom of Information Act (2000) gives individuals and organisations the right of access to all types of recorded information held, at the time the request is received, by public authorities such as the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). Section 84 of the Act states that in order for a request for information to be handled as a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, it must be for recorded information. For example, a Freedom of Information request would be for a copy of a policy, rather than an explanation as to why we have that policy in place. On occasion, the Ministry of Justice receives requests that do not ask for recorded information, but ask more general questions about, for example, a policy, opinion or a decision.

The below will be dealt with as Official Correspondence and you can expect a response from the appropriate area of the department.

If you do have any questions relating specifically to the Freedom of Information or Data Protection Act, please contact the Data Access and Compliance Unit at the following e-mail address: [HMCTS request email]

Many Thanks

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GEOFFREY REYNOLDS (Account suspended) left an annotation ()

Are you telling me that you hold no recorded information on this subject?

I find this very hard to believe as it must be a fundamental basis of your organisation, a root principle
of the court system..............