Jan regularly makes emergency applications (phone applications) before the Administrative Court/High Court to stop removal at the last minute. Such phone applications are often the last resort where no prior efforts to stop removal have been made or where efforts made have remained without success and the UKBA maintains their decision to remove.

Emergency phone applications are calls to the Duty Judge and can only be made outside office hours or at the week-end where a removal is scheduled to take place outside office hours (i.e. in the evening, at week-ends or very early in the morning).

It is within a Duty Judge’s power to make an order to stop the removal. Removal in breach of such an order would then be likely to amount to contempt of court.

Whilst it is always highly desirable that those concerned challenge removal directions or attempts to remove as soon as possible, in the absence of successful prior action an emergency injunction ordered by a Duty Judge does represent an effective remedy to stop removal as the last resort.