Table Of ContentENVIRONMENTAL ADJUDICATION
This book provides a detailed study of the role of adjudication in environmental
law. It examines theoretical issues concerning the role of judges and other
adjudicators, taking account of different legal cultures and contexts, exploring the
multifaceted pressures which rest on the shoulders of adjudicators when navigat-
ing the tensions between maintaining neutrality, resolving disputes, and providing
guidance and assistance for future courts, policy-makers and decision-makers. In
addition, it identifies the main adjudicatory ‘avenues’ which exist in the context
of the environmental law of England and Wales and explores the relationship
between adjudication and coherence before concluding with an exploration of
what constitutes ‘good’ environmental adjudication.
Environmental Adjudication
Emma Lees
and
Ole W Pedersen
HART PUBLISHING
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Kemp House, Chawley Park, Cumnor Hill, Oxford, OX2 9PH, UK
1385 Broadway, New York, NY 10018, USA
HART PUBLISHING, the Hart/Stag logo, BLOOMSBURY and the Diana logo are
trademarks of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
First published in Great Britain 2020
Copyright © Emma Lees and Ole W Pedersen, 2020
Emma Lees and Ole W Pedersen have asserted their right under the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988 to be identified as Authors of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage
or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers.
While every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of this work, no responsibility for
loss or damage occasioned to any person acting or refraining from action as a result of any
statement in it can be accepted by the authors, editors or publishers.
All UK Government legislation and other public sector information used in the work is
Crown Copyright ©. All House of Lords and House of Commons information used in
the work is Parliamentary Copyright ©. This information is reused under the terms
of the Open Government Licence v3.0 (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/
open-government-licence/version/3) except where otherwise stated.
All Eur-lex material used in the work is © European Union,
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/, 1998–2020.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data
Names: Lees, Emma, author. | Pedersen, Ole W., author.
Title: Environmental adjudication / Emma Lees and Ole W. Pedersen.
Description: Oxford, UK ; New York, NY : Hart Publishing, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2020. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020019003 (print) | LCCN 2020019004 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781509931460 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781509931484 (ePDF) | ISBN 9781509931477 (EPub)
Subjects: LCSH: Environmental law. | Political questions and judicial power.
Classification: LCC K3585 .L43 2020 (print) | LCC K3585 (ebook) | DDC 344.04/6—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020019003
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020019004
ISBN: HB: 978-1-50993-146-0
ePDF: 978-1-50993-148-4
ePub: 978-1-50993-147-7
Typeset by Compuscript Ltd, Shannon
To find out more about our authors and books visit www.hartpublishing.co.uk.
Here you will find extracts, author information, details of forthcoming events
and the option to sign up for our newsletters.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thanks go to our anonymous reviewers. We also particularly wish to thank
Maria Lee, Donald McGillivray, Tiina Paloniitty, Colin Reid, Chris Rodgers,
Sakshi S and Stephen Tromans QC for taking part in the Environmental
Adjudication Symposium, held in Cambridge, June 2019, and for their enormously
valuable contributions which are much appreciated. Finally, we thank each other,
for writing the words we didn’t.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgements ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������v
List of Abbreviations ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������xi
List of Figures�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������xiii
Table of Cases ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������xv
Table of Statutes���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������xxi
1. Introduction..............................................................................................................1
2. Defining Adjudication: Nature and Challenges ...................................................5
I. Introduction ...................................................................................................5
II. Theorising about Adjudication ....................................................................7
A. Defining Adjudication ..........................................................................8
B. Winners, Losers and Polycentricity ..................................................13
C. Argumentation, Reason and Proof ...................................................14
D. Generalisable Rules .............................................................................16
E. Institutionalised Decision-Making and Independence ..................18
III. Defining the Environment ..........................................................................21
IV. Challenging Adjudication ...........................................................................22
A. Politics, Policies and Values ...............................................................23
B. Science and Proof ................................................................................26
C. Shifting Regulatory Standards, a Lack of Resources and
Inexperience .........................................................................................28
D. Winners and Losers in the Adversarial Process ..............................29
V. Conclusions ..................................................................................................31
3. Multidimensional Environmental Adjudication ...............................................33
I. Introduction .................................................................................................33
II. Theory-Building ...........................................................................................34
III. The Multidimensional Practice of Environmental Law ..........................36
A. Playing with Blocks .............................................................................37
B. Elements ...............................................................................................40
C. Techniques............................................................................................43
D. Avenues .................................................................................................45
E. Case Study – Dover v CPRE Kent ......................................................46
F. Conclusions ..........................................................................................49
viii Table of Contents
IV. Linearity and Inevitability ........................................................................49
V. Level of Law-Making Power ....................................................................51
VI. Conclusions ...............................................................................................52
4. Avenues of Environmental Law Adjudication ...................................................54
I. Introduction ...............................................................................................54
II. Functions and Institutions .......................................................................55
III. Statutory Appeals ......................................................................................57
IV. Judicial Review ..........................................................................................62
V. Criminal Law and Sanctions ...................................................................75
A. Judicial Criminal Adjudication.......................................................78
B. Administrative Criminal Adjudication .........................................83
VI. Private Law .................................................................................................85
VII. Conclusions ...............................................................................................90
5. Avenues of Adjudication as Power-Broker .........................................................94
I. Introduction ...............................................................................................94
II. Adjudication and Power ...........................................................................95
A. Fact-Finding ......................................................................................99
B. Interpretation and Creation of Norms ........................................100
C. Access to Adjudicatory Fora .........................................................101
III. Power to Resolve Disputes .....................................................................102
A. Constitutional Principles and Jurisdiction ..................................102
B. Power Vis-à-Vis the Parties ...........................................................106
C. Power Vis-à-Vis Other Adjudicators ...........................................112
D. Conclusions .....................................................................................117
IV. Powers of Evidence and Fact-Finding ..................................................118
V. Power to Interpret Existing Rules and Create New Rules ..................122
VI. Power to Confer and Deny Access ........................................................127
VII. Conclusions .............................................................................................129
6. Avenues as Frames of Reasoning .......................................................................132
I. Introduction .............................................................................................132
II. Forms of Reasoning ................................................................................133
A. Reasons ............................................................................................135
B. Processes ..........................................................................................139
III. Public and Private Interest .....................................................................141
A. Private Interests ..............................................................................142
B. Public Interest .................................................................................144
IV. The Environment ....................................................................................148
V. Level of Scrutiny ......................................................................................152
Table of Contents ix
VI. Handling and Analysis of Scientific Information ...............................155
A. Engagement with Methodology ...................................................156
B. Deference to Natural England and the Environment
Agency .............................................................................................160
C. Reviewing Use of Expert Opinion ................................................162
VII. Objectivity, Impartiality and Neutrality ...............................................164
VIII. Conclusions .............................................................................................169
7. Avenues as Remedy Determining ......................................................................171
I. Introduction .............................................................................................171
II. Forms of Remedy ....................................................................................172
A. Statutory Appeals ............................................................................172
B. Judicial Review ................................................................................174
C. Private Law ......................................................................................174
D. Criminal Law ..................................................................................176
III. Environmental Considerations and Remedies ....................................177
A. Sentencing .......................................................................................183
B. Costs .................................................................................................188
C. Absence of Remedy ........................................................................190
IV. Conclusions .............................................................................................194
8. The Bricolage of Environmental Adjudication ................................................197
I. Introduction .............................................................................................197
II. Bricolage and Incoherence .....................................................................198
III. Understanding Good Adjudication ......................................................203
IV. Conclusions .............................................................................................207
Selected Bibliography ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������209
Index ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������213
