KHATUN MST ANJUARA v. TORTURE CLAIMS APPEAL BOARD

HCAL 392/2019

[2023] HKCFI 1484

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

CONSTITUTIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE LAW LIST

NO 392 OF 2019

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BETWEEN

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D E C I S I O N

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1.  On 14 October 2022 I refused to grant leave to the Applicant to apply for judicial review of the decision of the Torture Claims Appeal Board (“Board”) in rejecting/dismissing her appeal/petition regarding her non-refoulement claim upon finding that none of her proposed grounds were reasonably arguable for her intended challenge, that there was no error of law or procedural unfairness in her process before the Director of Immigration (“Director”) or the Board or in their decisions, and that there was no reasonable prospect of success in her intended application.

2.  The Applicant now by a summons issued on 7 February 2023 seeks extension of time to appeal against that decision, as the 14-day period for her to file her appeal under Order 53 rule 3(4) of the Rules of the High Court, Cap 4A expired on 28 October 2022, and hence she was more than 3 months late with her intended appeal.

3.  In considering whether to extend time for appealing against a decision refusing leave to apply for judicial review, the Court shall have regard to (i) the length of the delay; (ii) the reason for the delay; (iii) the prospect of success of the intended appeal; and (iv) the prejudice to the respondent if an extension of time were granted: see Re MK HCMP 2609/2016, 10 January 2017; Chu On Fong Winter v The Appeal Panel (Housing) HCMP 982/2017, 20 July 2017; Islam Raja Rais v Director of Immigration HCMP 881/2017, 26 June 2017; Re Gurang Min Bahadur [2018] HKCA 226; and Re Saqlain Muhammad [2018] HKCA 346.

4.  In the Applicant’s case, a delay of more than 3 months must be considered as very substantial and inordinate, for which she explained at the hearing of her summons that she never received the decision in the mail, and that it was later when she reported on her recognizance that she was so informed by her immigration officer, but by then she was already out of time with her intended appeal.

5.  The court record shows that the decision was first sent on the same day of 14 October 2022 to the Applicant’s last reported address but was subsequently returned through undelivered post, and upon enquiry with the Immigration Department that the Applicant had since changed her address, the decision was re-sent on 21 December 2022 to her latest address as the same as stated in her present application without being returned through undelivered post, which would have then put the deadline for her to file her appeal on 4 January 2023, but that she would still be late by more than one month with her intended appeal, not to mention the fact that she had never informed the Court of her new address in the first place, which was her duty to do so as soon as practicable of such change, and hence she has only herself to blame for any delay so caused. As such and in the absence of any evidence to corroborate her bare assertion, I am not satisfied that the Applicant has provided any good or valid reason for her serious delay.

6.  More importantly, the Applicant also failed to put forth any proper or valid draft or proposed grounds of appeal, or any particulars of any error in the decision or why it may reasonably be argued that the decision was unfair or unreasonable either in her summons or her affirmation, nor was she able to do so at the hearing of her summons. As such and in the absence of any error in the decision being clearly and properly identified by the Applicant, I do not see any prospect of success in her intended appeal.

7.  In the premises, and for the reasons given, it would be futile to extend time for what appears to be a hopeless appeal. I accordingly refuse her application for extension of time to appeal, and dismiss her summons.