Category: treaties

Four Reasons for Retaining the Charter: Part 2 – Remedies – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted February 5th, 2018 in appeals, brexit, constitutional reform, EC law, human rights, news, Supreme Court, treaties, working time by sally

‘The previous blog post drew attention to the way in which the scope of rights protected in the UK may be diminished post Brexit if the Charter is not retained as part of domestic law. The second reason for retaining the Charter draws attention to the remedy provided when rights are breached. Individuals relying on the Charter at the moment can use the Charter to disapply legislation which breaches Charter rights. This is a legally binding remedy which invalidates the relevant legislation. This is not the case for those relying on common law rights, or their Convention rights under the Human Rights Act.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 4th February 2018

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Four Reasons for Retaining the Charter Post Brexit: Part 1 – A Broader Protection of Rights – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted February 5th, 2018 in brexit, constitutional reform, EC law, human rights, news, treaties by sally

‘This series of short blog posts will argue that there are four main reasons for allowing the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights to continue to have domestic effect in UK law. First, it provides a broader scope of rights than either the ECHR or the common law. Second, it provides a better remedy for a breach of rights. Third, to retain the Charter provides greater clarity as to the extent to which human rights are protected in the UK. Fourth, the Charter provides for a protection of rights that has more democratic credentials than either the common (judge-made) law, or the ECHR. The final blog post will explain why the Government’s main argument against retention of the Charter – that it only applies within the scope of EU law – does not provide a justification for removing the Charter from domestic law.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 2nd February 2018

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Sovereignty or Supremacy? Lords Constitution Committee Reports on EU (Withdrawal) Bill — Mark Elliott and Stephen Tierney – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted January 30th, 2018 in bills, constitutional reform, EC law, news, reports, select committees, treaties by sally

‘The House of Lords Constitution Committee today issues its main report on the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill. This follows the preliminary and interim reports on the Bill that the Committee published last year. The new report is wide-ranging and hard-hitting, the Committee’s view being that the Bill ‘risks fundamentally undermining legal certainty’.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 29th January 2018

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Tax experts ‘concerned’ by post-Brexit customs law plans – OUT-LAW.com

Posted January 30th, 2018 in bills, brexit, customs and excise, EC law, news, treaties by sally

‘The UK government’s desire to keep planned post-Brexit customs and tax legislation as wide as possible risks creating “unnecessary uncertainty” for businesses, tax experts have warned.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 29th January 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Brexit: EU (Withdrawal Bill) fundamentally flawed, say peers – BBC News

Posted January 29th, 2018 in bills, brexit, constitutional reform, EC law, news, select committees, treaties by sally

‘Proposed legislation bringing existing EU law into UK law is “fundamentally flawed” and needs to be reworked, a Lords committee has said.’

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BBC News, 29th January 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The EU gave LGBT people protection. Without it, we face persecution again – The Guardian

Posted January 22nd, 2018 in EC law, homosexuality, human rights, news, sexual orientation discrimination, transgender persons, treaties by sally

‘The EU withdrawal bill undermines the rights of all UK citizens – but it is especially disastrous for the LGBT community.’

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The Guardian, 22nd January 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Law Pod UK Ep. 21: Outlining the Legal Milestones to Brexit – 1 COR

Posted January 22nd, 2018 in brexit, constitutional reform, EC law, news, treaties by sally

‘In December 2017, the principles of Britain’s divorce from the European Union were agreed, and we now move to what Theresa May has called the “implementation phase”. But, as Professor Catherine Barnard of Cambridge University tells Bonnie Soames, it should really be termed “the transition”.’

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Law Pod UK, 17th January 2018

Source: audioboom.com

Brexit through the Gift Shop? Are we about to give away our competition law claims? – Blackstone Chambers

Posted December 8th, 2017 in bills, brexit, competition, EC law, news, treaties by sally

‘Recent press reports have suggested that competition lawyers in other Member States have been confidently predicting the death of cartel claims in the UK following Brexit. But reports of the demise of this species of litigation are premature. The European Communities Act 1972 (the ECA 1972) will be repealed following the entry into force of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill (the Bill). But this is unlikely to have any significant impact on the ability of claimants to bring claims before UK courts for damages caused by infringement of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) – at least for quite some time. The reason for this is the provisions of the Bill that protect rights that have accrued prior to “exit day”.’

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Blackstone Chambers, 4th December 2017

Source: www.blackstonechambers.com

New Acts – legislation.gov.uk

Posted December 8th, 2017 in competition, EC law, international law, legislation, treaties by sally

European Union (Approvals) Act 2017

The Trade Bill – renegotiation and renewal of EU trade agreements after Brexit – in this new constitutional territory more Parliamentary scrutiny is urgently needed – Brexit Law

Posted December 7th, 2017 in agreements, bills, brexit, EC law, international trade, news, parliament, select committees, treaties by sally

‘The lack of adequate Parliamentary scrutiny when the UK negotiates trade agreements (something it has not done in its own right for many years) has come to the attention of the House of Commons International Trade Committee. This is timely given the prospect of the UK negotiating the single most important trade agreement it is likely to negotiate for a long time – its future trade agreement with the EU. The context for the Committee’s concern is its inquiry into the Trade Bill. One of the issues which the Bill addresses is the domestic implementation in the UK of those EU trade agreements which are adapted for continued application by the UK after Brexit. The Committee has asked whether Parliamentary scrutiny of ministerial rules implementing these agreements is adequate, and, more broadly, whether scrutiny of the UK signing up to these and other trade agreements, is adequate.’

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Brexit Law, 6th December 2017

Source: brexit.law

Thomas Horsley: In (Domestic) Courts We Trust: The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill and The Interpretation of Retained EU Law – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted November 28th, 2017 in bills, brexit, EC law, interpretation, news, treaties by sally

‘Earlier in the year, I posted on the importance of Parliament legislating to provide a new ‘constitutional instruction’ to national courts to replace that currently set out in the European Communities Act 1972 (ECA) and offer clear guidance on judicial interpretation post-Brexit (see here). The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill provides domestic courts with that instruction as part of its effort to prepare the UK legal order for the challenges of leaving the European Union. This second post reviews the terms of that instruction and reflects on the scope that it would afford national courts to shape the development of domestic law post-Brexit.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 27th November 2017

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Armin Cuyvers: Two Legal Tools to Avoid Hard Brexit: Delayed Exit and Decreasing Membership under Article 50 TEU – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted November 28th, 2017 in brexit, constitutional reform, delay, EC law, news, treaties by sally

‘Faced with a cliff, jumping is generally considered one of the least pleasant solutions. Yet we are racing towards the edge of the Brexit cliff. Miracles excluded, the UK and EU will not be able to finalize the necessary Brexit agreements in time. Effectively, there is less than a year left, and we have not even moved beyond the Brexit bill. As an extension of the two-year term seems politically impossible in the UK, we seem left with one unlikely and one disastrous possible outcome.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 24th November 2017

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Equal Civil Partnerships: Implications of Strasbourg’s latest ruling for Steinfeld and Keidan – Helen Fenwick & Andy Hayward – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted November 22nd, 2017 in civil partnerships, foreign jurisdictions, human rights, international courts, marriage, news, sex discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination, treaties by sally

‘Equal civil partnerships divide opinions. For their proponents, access to such a status, and the legal benefits that follow, allows couples critical of marriage – whether same or different-sex – the ability to express their relationship through (in their view) a more appropriate, modern and egalitarian legal institution. Opponents question such a need in light of the availability of civil marriage, which has over centuries evolved and may not now necessarily be perceived as embodying the patriarchal or heteronormative values that its critics challenge. Calls for allowing different-sex as well as same-sex couples to enter civil partnerships in England and Wales have grown louder recently following the failed Equal Love case (Ferguson v UK), the production of several Private Members Bills and the on-going litigation in Steinfeld and Keidan v Secretary of State for Education, due to be heard by the Supreme Court in Spring 2018. The desire, however, for different-sex civil partnerships is not limited to this jurisdiction, and was recently explored for the first time by the Strasbourg court in Ratzenböck and Seydl v Austria. After exploring the background to this legal challenge, this post will critically analyse the reasoning of the Strasbourg Court and assess its implications for the challenge in Steinfeld.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 21st November 2017

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

All Born Free and Equal? How Equality Underpins Our Human Rights – RightsInfo

Posted November 22nd, 2017 in equality, Equality and Human Rights Commission, human rights, news, treaties by sally

‘Equality pops up all the time when we talk about human rights. In fact, the very first article of the UN Convention on Human Rights states that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”’

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RightsInfo, 21st November 2017

Source: rightsinfo.org

How Do Human Rights Protect Children? – RightsInfo

Posted November 21st, 2017 in children, human rights, news, treaties by sally

‘Human rights apply to people of all ages. It doesn’t matter if you’re 7 or 72, we can all expect the same basic protections.’

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RightsInfo, 20th November 2017

Source: rightsinfo.org

Interpretation of Article 24(2) Brussels Recast – Jurisdiction and Conflict of Laws

Posted November 15th, 2017 in company law, conflict of laws, EC law, interpretation, jurisdiction, news, subsidiary companies, treaties by tracey

‘In its recent decision in Koza Ltd v Akcil [2017] EWCA Civ 1609, the Court of Appeal interpreted the scope of Article 24 (2) Brussels I Recast, which governs exclusive jurisdiction “in proceedings which have as their object the validity of the constitution, the nullity or dissolution of companies or other legal persons or associations of natural or legal persons, or the validity of the decisions of their organs, the courts of the Member State in which the company, legal person or association has its seat”.’

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Jurisdiction and Conflict of Laws, 10th November 2017

Source: jurisdictionandconflicts.net

Calls to Lower Voting Age Sidelined – But is There a Human Rights Argument? – Rightsinfo

Posted November 6th, 2017 in bills, elections, enfranchisement, human rights, news, treaties by tracey

‘MPs in Westminster today debated proposals to lower the voting age across the UK to 16 – but could there be a human rights argument for this?’

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Rightsinfo, 3rd November 2017

Source: rightsinfo.org

Ratification of the Council of Europe convention on combating violence against women and domestic violence – Home Office

Posted November 2nd, 2017 in domestic violence, human rights, press releases, reports, treaties by tracey

‘The report sets out measures being taken by the government toward ratifying the Istanbul Convention.’

Full press release

Home Office, 1st November 2017

Source: www.gov.uk/home-office

Youth Justice System ‘Falls Short’ of Human Rights Obligations, MPs Claim – Rights Info

Posted October 30th, 2017 in criminal records, disclosure, employment, human rights, news, rehabilitation, reports, select committees, treaties, United Nations, young offenders by sally

‘The current system of disclosing past convictions undermines the principles of the youth justice system, according to a report published today by the Justice Committee.’

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Rights Info, 27th October 2017

Source: rightsinfo.org

Law Pod UK Ep. 15: Inquests and Article Two – 1 COR

Posted October 30th, 2017 in EC law, human rights, inquests, news, treaties by sally

‘Caroline Cross and Rachel Marcus look at the link between inquests and Article Two of the European Convention on Human Rights. Recorded at the 2017 Public Law event at King’s College London.’

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Law Pod UK, 17th October 2017

Source: audioboom.com