High court upholds client’s legal aid

Duncan Lewis Solicitors has achieved a significant High Court victory for a woman denied legal aid to obtain “magic mushroom therapy” (psilocybin) for her life-threatening condition of anorexia nervosa. In the case of EB, R (on the application of) v Director of Legal Aid Casework [2026] EWHC (Admin), the Court quashed a previous decision that refused Exceptional Case Funding (ECF) necessary for a Home Office licence application under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

The claimant, who is in her late thirties, has battled severe anorexia since her teenage years. In 2022, she took part in a clinical trial at Imperial College London that involved psilocybin, a Class A controlled substance, and experienced significant improvements in her condition with no notable side effects. After completing the trial, she sought to apply for a Home Office licence to continue her treatment in a strictly medically supervised environment.

Due to the complex nature of the regulatory framework and the effects of her disorder on her cognitive capabilities, the claimant required legal support to assist in preparing her licence application. However, her request for Exceptional Case Funding under section 10 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) was denied in February 2025, leading her to initiate judicial review proceedings.

The High Court ruled in her favour on all grounds. The judge determined that the decision-maker had fundamentally mischaracterised the application, treating it incorrectly as a case of unsupervised personal use of a controlled substance, rather than a request for a medically supervised treatment. The Court also noted significant oversights in failing to consider Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects the right to private life. Additionally, the court found that there had been errors in the financial assessment, leading to an overestimation of costs by £140,000.

As a result, the refusal was quashed, and the defendant was instructed to make a fresh lawful decision regarding the claimant's application. Furthermore, costs were awarded to the claimant, marking a noteworthy milestone for patients seeking legal aid for controlled substance treatments.

Tamara Smillie, Public Law Solicitor at Duncan Lewis, expressed the importance of the ruling, stating that “This judgment is an important reminder that access to justice must be real and effective — particularly for vulnerable people facing complex legal systems. Our client was seeking the opportunity to pursue a strictly regulated medical treatment for a life-threatening condition. The Court recognised that the legal aid refusal failed to engage with the true nature of her case.”

Tamara, who is an experienced human rights lawyer, has built a distinctive practice focusing on licensing applications under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 on human rights grounds. The claimant was represented by Tamara Smillie from Duncan Lewis Solicitors, alongside counsel Alex Goodman KC and Ali Bandegani, marking a pivotal moment for vulnerable patients in need of medical treatment.

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