Emma Fitzsimons is a public law barrister, specialising in immigration, trafficking, community care, civil liberties and detention. She acts at all levels, including before SIAC and the ECtHR. She is ranked in Legal 500 (Administrative Law and Human Rights, and Immigration) and in Chambers & Partners (Immigration).
She regularly acts for vulnerable clients, including children, victims of trafficking, and persons lacking mental capacity. She also advises on strategic issues, including on recent legislative and policy changes to immigration law. She is a contributing author to Macdonald’s Immigration Law and Practice, Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery Law and Practice and LAG Migrant Support Handbook.
Administrative and Public Law
Overview
Emma undertakes a broad range of public law work, in immigration, nationality, migrant support, trafficking, and unlawful detention. She is ranked in Legal 500 as a Leading Junior for Administrative and Public Law. In the last two years, Emma has been instructed in a number of cases involving claims by Afghan nationals and their family members seeking relocation to the UK.
Notable cases include:
- Asylum Aid v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWHC 316
- Successful judicial review challenge to the statelessness family reunion rules on behalf of Asylum Aid, with Stephanie Harrison KC. Coverage in Free Movement.
- R (S and AZ) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 1402 (Admin) and [2022] EWCA Civ 1092
- Successful judicial review challenge on behalf of two Afghan judges seeking relocation to the UK.
- R (SH) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 1937 (Admin)
- Successful judicial review on behalf of an Afghan journalist, seeking relocation to the UK.
- R (JZ) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] UKAITUR JR2022LON1012
- Successful judicial review on behalf of an Afghan judge, challenging a refusal of Leave Outside the Rules.
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Immigration Law
Overview
Emma advises and represents on all areas of immigration law, with a focus on international protection and human rights law. She undertakes immigration and nationality related judicial review challenges, in the Upper Tribunal and High Court. In the past year, she has worked considerably on Afghan relocation cases, and challenges to Albanian certification claims.
She has particular experience representing children and young people, trafficking victims, persons with serious mental health diagnoses and those who lack mental capacity. She has a high rate of success before the First-tier and Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber). She is a contributing author to Macdonald’s Immigration Law and Practice.
Recent cases include:
- Asylum Aid v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWHC 316
- Successful judicial review challenge on behalf of Asylum Aid, with Stephanie Harrison KC. Coverage in Free Movement.
- R (JZ) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] UKAITUR JR2022LON1012
- Successful judicial review on behalf of an Afghan judge, challenging a refusal of Leave Outside the Rules.
- J (a child) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (2022)
- Successful settlement of an Afghan child’s appeal against the UT’s dismissal of his asylum appeal, following grant of permission by the Court of Appeal. On remittal, the Home Office granted refugee leave.
- R (ROO (Nigeria)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWHC 1295 (Admin)
- Successful judicial review challenge to section 96 certificate and refusal of fresh claim of LGBT torture victim. Obtained urgent interim relief to prevent removal.
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Community Care Law
Overview
Emma advises on all aspects of migrant support, including judicial review challenges to asylum support and accommodation. Her clients include those facing street homelessness as well as for persons in immigration detention who require bail accommodation.
She also acts for victims of trafficking seeking access to support and recovery services, and access to suitable accommodation. She also undertakes age assessments, which is informed by her significant experience with working with trafficked and asylum-seeking children. She has secured positive results via settlement. She is a contributing author to Migrant Support Handbook (first edition, Legal Action Group, Luh & Johnston).
Recent cases include:
R (NVC) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] EWHC 3172 (Admin)
Successful interim relief application, challenging a Public Order Disqualification notice, and obtaining re-entry to MSVCC support, enabling release from detention to safe house accommodation.
R (AK) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (2023)
Obtained urgent interim relief for asylum support accommodation to be provided to a destitute, vulnerable asylum seeker and victim of trafficking.
R (HIS) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (2023)
Obtained urgent interim relief for section 98 asylum support accommodation to be provided to a destitute asylum seeker.
R (TC) v Lincolnshire County Council (2023)
Successful settlement of age assessment of challenge of a victim of trafficking.
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Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC)
Overview
Emma advises and represents individuals in appeals and reviews before SIAC, including serious organised crime and national security. Recently, she was instructed in D5, D6, D7 v SSHD SC/176-178/2020, the joined appeals against deprivation and review of exclusion from the UK of three individuals. The case is the first where SIAC has applied the Supreme Court’s judgment in Begum to the serious organised crime context.
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Claims Against Public Authorities
Overview
Emma advises and represents individuals in claims against public authorities, in particular claims arising out of immigration detention; failures to protect and unsuitable accommodation.
She has considerable unlawful detention challenges, both the public law elements (including securing interim release and bail accommodation) and the civil claims for false imprisonment and HRA claims. She has acted for victims of torture, victims of trafficking, and persons lacking mental capacity.
She is currently instructed in a number of ongoing claims, including:
- Multi party litigation arising out of allocation to unsuitable asylum accommodation
- Unsafe release from detention of a vulnerable victim of trafficking
- False imprisonment and breach of confidence in asylum procedures
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International Human Rights
Overview
Emma has significant expertise in international human rights law. Academically, she focused on international human rights law as part of her Masters’ Degree. Before coming to the Bar, she worked in both the UK Parliament and at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, where she worked on draft legislation and human rights issues.
In practice, she has experience acting in applications and preparing interventions before the European Court of Human Rights. She was part of the counsel team instructed by the First Applicant in VCL and AN v United Kingdom (77587/12) [2021] 73 EHRR 9, a landmark case finding the UK had violated the Article 4 and 6 ECHR rights of a child victim of trafficking, by prosecuting him for cannabis cultivation offences.
She was instructed by JWCI in its intervention in Otite v United Kingdom (18339/19) concerning Article 8 in deportation. She is currently instructed in a pending intervention in respect of mentally disabled detainees in immigration detention.
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Trafficking and Modern Slavery
Overview
Emma has significant expertise advising and representing victims of trafficking. She was part of the legal team instructed in VCL and AN v United Kingdom (77587/12) [2021] 73 EHRR 9, a landmark case which found the UK had violated Article 4 and 6 ECHR by prosecuting a child victim of trafficking arising out of their exploitation.
She regularly obtains successful outcomes for victims, including overturning negative reasonable/conclusive grounds decisions, and securing access to recovery services and leave to remain. She has also secured substantial damages for trafficking victims in civil claims arising out of unlawful detention and failures to protect. She also has a busy practice representing trafficking victims before the Tribunal, in asylum, human rights and deportation appeals. She is a contributing author to Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery Law and Practice (second edition, Bloomsbury Professional).
Notable cases include:
- R (NVC) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] EWHC 3172 (Admin)
- Successful interim relief application, challenging a Public Order Disqualification notice, and obtaining re-entry to MSVCC support, enabling release from detention to safe house accommodation.
- R (JS and AH) v SSHD (2022)
- Instructed as junior counsel in one of two linked judicial review claims, challenging the Home Secretary’s policy, Discretionary leave considerations for victims of modern slavery. Case successfully settled post-permission, with SSHD agreeing to withdraw the deportation orders, and granting both individuals leave to remain.
- R (TVN) Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] EWHC 3019 (Admin)
- Acted in successful challenge to a negative Conclusive Grounds decision for a vulnerable victim of trafficking and torture, where the High Court gave helpful guidance on the treatment of lies and application of Lucas directions to trafficking decisions.
- VCL and AN v United Kingdom (77587/12) [2021] 73 EHRR 9
- Landmark case finding the UK had violated the Article 4 and 6 ECHR rights of a child victim of trafficking, by prosecuting him for cannabis cultivation offences.
