High Court lambasts GDC's conduct

Mr Justice Fordham criticises GDC's conduct

The General Dental Council (GDC) has been delivered a scathing rebuke by a High Court judge for its handling of legal proceedings. On 20 March 2025, in a judgment that sent shockwaves through regulatory circles, Mr. Justice Fordham detailed systematic failures that reinforce existing criticisms about the GDC's fitness for purpose.

Judicial Condemnation of Regulatory Conduct

The judgment presents a forensic examination of the GDC's actions, revealing a pattern of behaviour incompatible with the standards expected of a statutory regulator. The Court's findings include:

• Deliberate Exclusion from Proceedings: The GDC engaged in ex parte communications with the Court, deliberately excluding the Claimant, a registrant acting as a litigant in person, from crucial correspondence about their own case—a fundamental breach of procedural fairness.

• Inexcusable Procedural Delays:

  Despite immediate awareness of a Court order, the GDC waited approximately four months before applying to set it aside. Mr. Justice Fordham characterized this delay as "without reasonable justification" and demonstrating "apparent indifference" to the administration of justice.

• Failure to Engage with Claimant: When formally notified by the Claimant on April 5, 2024, that judicial review proceedings had been initiated, the GDC made no attempt to seek clarification or request copies of the relevant Court filings—an omission the judge found "difficult to comprehend."

  
  

• Disregard to make enquiries: The GDC failed to investigate conflicting information demonstrating what the Court described as "a concerning lack of diligence" in verifying critical procedural facts.

Regulator's Obligations Under Scrutiny

As the statutory body entrusted with regulating dental professionals, the GDC bears heightened responsibilities to uphold principles of fairness and transparency. Mr. Justice Fordham emphasized that these obligations extend beyond substantive decision-making to encompass all aspects of legal proceedings involving the regulator.

The Court specifically noted that the GDC's conduct "fell significantly short of the standards reasonably expected" of a public body exercising regulatory functions, particularly in the context of contested proceedings that directly affect registrants' professional standing.

Amplifying Calls for Abolition

This damning judgment provides substantial ammunition for those advocating the GDC's abolition. Dental professional bodies have long questioned whether the GDC remains fit for purpose, citing concerns about disproportionate fees, inconsistent decision-making, and an adversarial approach to regulation.

Mr. Justice Fordham's findings now add judicial weight to these criticisms, highlighting fundamental failures in the regulator's approach to due process and fairness. The judgment exposes not merely isolated mistakes but what appears to be institutional disregard for core principles of administrative justice.

Dental professionals already burdened by what many consider excessive annual retention fees will inevitably question why they should continue funding a regulator that demonstrates such apparent contempt for proper judicial procedure. The judgment strengthens arguments that comprehensive regulatory reform—potentially including the GDC's dissolution and replacement with a more accountable body—has become not merely desirable but necessary.

The GDC now faces a critical test: it must not only acknowledge these serious failings but demonstrate through immediate structural changes that it can regain the trust of both the profession it regulates and the public it purports to protect. Without such decisive action, calls for its abolition will only grow louder and more compelling.

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Sunil Abeyewickreme is a defence lawyer specializing in healthcare law and professional disciplinary matters. He regularly represents doctors, dentists and other healthcare practitioners before their regulators. He is a Partner at international law firm, gunnercooke llp.