9.30am; Tuesday 18th March 2003 at the Royal Courts of Justice.

The Court of Appeal's judgement on a key element of the government's asylum policy will be delivered at 9.30am on Tuesday morning.

Liberty and the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) have led the campaign against denying certain refugees the right to benefits, and even the right to work. The opeartion of the legislation - contained in section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act of 2002 - has been to make hundreds of asylum seekers destitute if they fail to apply for asylum as soon as they get to the United Kingdom.

Human rights campaigners won an injunction in the High Court on the 19th February 2003 to allow temporary access to benefits pending the Court of Appeal's ruling.

Liberty lawyer Shami Chakrabarti will be make a statement on the steps of the Royal Courts of Justice at 9.30am and will be available for interviews through out the day.