header-logo header-logo

Brexit: a proposal

08 November 2016 / Jonathan Rickford
Categories: Opinion , Brexit , EU
printer mail-detail

Jonathan Rickford advocates taking the common sense approach towards Art 50 & the role of Parliament

Triggering Art 50 of the EU treaty will most probably lead to UK exit from the EU within a period of two years after notice of the decision to withdraw is given (the period can be extended if all 27 remaining members states agree, but that seems unlikely). Exit will come about either in accordance with an agreement between the UK, the Council of Ministers of the 27 member states and the European Parliament concluded within that period, or by the failure of the negotiations to conclude in time.

Whether the government has authority under the Royal Prerogative to give notice is a legal question decided in the negative by the Divisional Court on 3 November, but to be finally resolved by the Supreme Court before the year end (see Michael Zander QC, "Art 50: the verdict"). If the Supreme Court follows the reasoning of the High Court—that notice changes UK law—then primary legislation is required to

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—Jenny Leonard

DWF—Jenny Leonard

Former Metropolitan Police director joins police, care and justice team

Charles Russell Speechlys—Ed Morgan

Charles Russell Speechlys—Ed Morgan

Corporate real estate and funds expertise expands with partner hire

Hill Dickinson—Helen Foley, Charlotte Fallon & Gary Parnell

Hill Dickinson—Helen Foley, Charlotte Fallon & Gary Parnell

Firm grows London business services team with trio of partner hires

NEWS
AlphaBiolabs has made a £500 donation to Sean’s Place, a men’s mental health charity based in Sefton, as part of its ongoing Giving Back initiative
Human rights lawyers, social justice champion, co-founder of the law firm Bindmans, and NLJ columnist Sir Geoffrey Bindman KC has died at the age of 92 years
RFC Seraing v FIFA, in which the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) reaffirmed that awards by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) may be reviewed by EU courts on public-policy grounds, is under examination in this week's NLJ by Dr Estelle Ivanova of Valloni Attorneys at Law, Zurich
Writing in NLJ this week, Sophie Ashcroft and Miranda Joseph of Stevens & Bolton dissect the Privy Council’s landmark ruling in Jardine Strategic Ltd v Oasis Investments II Master Fund Ltd (No 2), which abolishes the long-standing 'shareholder rule'
In NLJ this week, Sailesh Mehta and Theo Burges of Red Lion Chambers examine the government’s first-ever 'Afghan leak' super-injunction—used to block reporting of data exposing Afghans who aided UK forces and over 100 British officials. Unlike celebrity privacy cases, this injunction centred on national security. Its use, the authors argue, signals the rise of a vast new body of national security law spanning civil, criminal, and media domains
back-to-top-scroll