R (AB) v Secretary of State for Justice

This appeal concerns the solitary confinement of a young person detained in a Young Offenders Institution (YOI) in the UK. The appellant, AB, was placed in solitary confinement for a period of time due to his behavior and safety concerns. He brought a claim against the Secretary of State for Justice, arguing that his treatment violated Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which prohibits inhuman or degrading treatment. The appeal raised two questions of law: whether the solitary confinement of persons under 18 is inherently inhuman and degrading, and if not, whether there is a universal test for compatibility with Article 3. The Supreme Court considered the arguments and concluded that neither argument was accepted. The court held that the solitary confinement of persons under 18 is not inherently inhuman and degrading, and there is no universal test for compatibility with Article 3. Instead, the court must undertake a highly fact-sensitive inquiry into all the circumstances of each case to determine whether the high threshold of Article 3 has been crossed. The appeal was dismissed, and the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the lower courts that AB's treatment did not violate Article 3 of the ECHR.