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About
Provided by Antonia Benfield
Practice Areas
Antonia is an established practitioner in the fields of immigration, public law and community care. She specialises in asylum law and children’s rights and has extensive expertise in age assessment and asylum support challenges, and unlawful detention claims. She is well-placed to undertake cross-cutting work in the fields of asylum and children’s rights.
Antonia acted in country guidance cases in respect of Eritrea (MST and Others (national service – risk categories) Eritrea CG [2016] UKUT 443 (IAC)) and Sri Lanka (KK & RS (Sur place activities: risk) Sri Lanka CG [2021] UKUT 130 (IAC)). She has extensive experience in strategic litigation and policy challenges including:
• Protection proceedings brought by Tamil refugees on Diego Garcia against the Commissioner of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT).
• R (ECPAT UK) v Kent CC & SSHD [2023] EWHC 1953 (Admin) – challenge to cap on UAS children taken into care and instead placed in Home Office commissioned hotels.
• R (MA & HT) v SSHD [2022] EWHC 98 (Admin) – challenge to lawfulness of policy governing age assessment of UAS children at Kent Intake Unit.
• R (NB & Ors) v SSHD [2021] EWHC 1489 (Admin) – challenge to adequacy of Napier Barracks as asylum support accommodation.
Career
Antonia regularly designs and delivers training for solicitors, law centres and charities. She is a trustee of West London Welcome and legal advisor to Counterpoints Arts. She was a finalist in the LALY Awards for Barrister of the Year in 2023.
Professional Memberships
ILPA
ALBA
HRLA
BHRC