Isidor Lamah v Secretary of State for the Home Department

Facts

The appellant, Isidor Lamah, born on 2 December 1986, is a national of Guinea who entered the United Kingdom illegally in June and claimed asylum. That claim was refused and his appeal was dismissed by Immigration Judge Bircher in September 2010, with a further appeal dismissed by the Upper Tribunal, Senior Immigration Judge Hanson, in June 2011; he became appeal rights exhausted on 13 July 2011. Further submissions were made in December 2015 and refused in April 2016. On 10 December 2021 he made further submissions founded on his poor mental health, which the Secretary of State for the Home Department refused on 22 May 2024 as a human rights claim, and he appealed that refusal to the First-tier Tribunal under section 82(1) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 and section 84 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002. The appellant was initially represented and a witness statement, skeleton argument and medical evidence were uploaded, but his solicitors came off the record on 7 April 2026 for lack of contact. Notice of hearing was served on 1 May 2026. He neither attended the hearing at Taylor House nor applied for an adjournment, and the Secretary of State was represented by Ms Barry. The medical material relied on comprised a psychiatric report of Dr Hameed dated 15 July 2021 and a counselling letter dated 31 January 2022.