The High Court case The Keepers & Governors of the Possessions, Revenues & Goods of the Free Grammar School of John Lyon, within the Town of Harrow-on-the-Hill v Attorney General [2024] EWHC 2857 (Ch), in which Jonathan Fowles acted for the Attorney General, has been featured in The Times.

The case involved Harrow School’s application for a cy-près scheme to update its charitable objects originally set out in its 1572 Royal Charter. The Hon. Mr Justice Rajah rejected the claim, delivering a judgment that provides significant insights into the cy-près jurisdiction and serves as the first judicial authority on certain provisions of the Public Schools Act 1868. This Act was introduced to reform the governance of prominent public schools, including Harrow, following the Clarendon Commission.

Jonathan was instructed by the Government Legal Department’s Commercial Law Group (Litigation) to act for the defendant.

The article, published in The Times on Wednesday, 2 November 2024, is available to subscribers and can be read in full here.