The UK’s formal withdrawal from the EU took effect at 11 pm on 31 January 2020 (exit day). At this point, the withdrawal period under Article 50 TEU came to an end and the ratified Withdrawal Agreement setting out the legal terms of the UK’s withdrawal entered into force. The ratified Withdrawal agreement was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on exit day along with the Political Declaration on the framework for the future relationship between the UK and EU: • Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, OJ L 29 31.01.20, p 7-187 • Political declaration setting out the framework for the future relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom, OJ C 34 31.01.20, p 1-16 Exit day marked a key milestone in terms of being the date the UK ceased to be an EU Member State. It also marked the start of the 11-month transition or implementation

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. The UK and EU’s specific proposals for dealing with jurisdiction of disputes will be a key issue for UK practitioners. This Practice Note considers the impact that Brexit will have on determining jurisdiction or understanding choice of court agreements when the UK leaves the EU. It considers the current position, as determined under Regulation (EU) 1215/2012, Brussels I (recast). It then summarises the UK’s and EU’s respective positions and considers the likely potential outcomes, based on the information available, for such issues. The Practice Note considers potential issues that may arise when the UK leaves the EU. It also considers potential regimes that may assist in determining the jurisdiction, being the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements and the Lugano Convention 2007. Finally, it considers the drafting of a jurisdiction clause. For an understanding of how a deal or no deal position may be reached, the House of Commons Exiting the EU Committee report: The progress of the UK’s negotiations on EU withdrawal (June to

Background—EU law in the UK Pre-exit day The European Communities Act 1972 (ECA 1972) was introduced and intended to give effect to the UK's obligations as a Member State under the relevant EU treaties to comply with EU law. Under ECA 1972, s 2(1), certain types of EU rights and obligations, which were directly applicable and/or directly effective, were given effect in the UK without the need for any further domestic legislation. This included rights in the EU Treaties as well as EU regulations which contain detailed legal rules. Other types of EU law were given effect through UK regulations made under ECA 1972, s 2(2), or in some cases through separate Acts of Parliament. This included EU directives which set out broad outcomes or frameworks but which leave it to each Member State to make its own provision to achieve the required legal effect. In terms of its application in Member States, EU law is ‘supreme’. This means that where there is a conflict between EU law and a Member State’s domestic legislation,

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. Key publications on possible implications for environmental law More than 90% of environmental law is estimated to have derived from EU legislation and so the implications of Brexit on environmental law will be very significant. A number of government departments, committees in parliament, advisory committees and independent parliamentary bodies, academic institutions and environmental law associations, industry bodies and NGOs, as well as the European Commission, have carried out research into these possible implications and this Practice Note lists some of the most significant publications. Brexit impact: 11 pm (GMT) on 31 December 2020 marks the end of the Brexit transition/implementation period entered into following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. At this point in time (referred to in UK law as ‘IP completion day’), key transitional arrangements come to an end and significant changes begin to take effect across the UK’s legal regime. Any changes relevant to this content will be set out below. For further guidance, see Practice Note: Brexit—impact

ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note enables you to keep track of Brexit-related legislation of relevance to employment practitioners which is coming up or has already come into force. For details of general employment-related legislation, see: Legislation tracker—employment. Links to news reports providing full information on the relevant legislation are included where appropriate. Brexit-related legislation of relevance to employment practitioners Commencement date (unless otherwise indicated) Legislative change By 31 December 2023 (other provisions subject to commencement orders) Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (previously known as the Brexit Freedoms Bill), the special status of retained EU law under UK law will be ended from the end of 2023. Retained EU law includes the Working Time Regulations 1998, the Equality Act 2010, TUPE 2006, the Agency Worker Regulations 2010 and Part-time Worker Regulations 2000. The Bill will enable the government to specify, amend, repeal and replace retained EU law more easily via secondary legislation. The Bill contains provisions on sunsetting the majority of retained EU law, ending the principle

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note considers the impact that Brexit will have on the service of court documents within the EU when the UK leaves the EU. It considers the current position under Regulation (EC) 1393/2007, the Service Regulation and summarises the UK and EU’s respective positions and considers the likely potential outcomes, based on the information available. The Practice Note then considers potential issues which may arise when the UK exits the EU and potential regimes which may assist when seeking to serve judicial and extra-judicial documents in the EU. For an understanding of how a deal or no deal position may be reached, the House of Commons Exiting the EU Committee report: The progress of the UK’s negotiations on EU withdrawal (June to September 2018) at para [35] provides a useful flowchart. Current position When seeking to serve documents out of the UK on a party in an EU Member State, the methods of service are provided for in Regulation (EC) 1393/2007, the Service

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note considers the impact that Brexit will have on determining the settlement of disputes using either mediation or other forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) when the UK exits the EU. It considers the current position under EU directive for mediation is the Mediation Directive 2008/52/EC, the Cross-Border Mediation (EU Directive) Regulations 2011, SI 2011/1133 transposed the directive into the law of England and Wales and relevant EU directive for ADR is the European Directive 2013/11/EU on ADR which amends Regulation (EC) 2006/2004 and Directive 2009/22/EC. ADR for Consumer Disputes (Competent Authorities) Regulations 2015, SI 2015/542 transposed the directive into the law of England and Wales. It then summarises the UK and EU’s respective positions, considers the likely potential outcomes which may arise when the UK exits the EU as well as potential regimes which may assist when seeking to mediate disputes and enforce settlement agreements. For an understanding of how a deal or no deal position may be reached, the House of Commons

At 11pm UK time on 31 January 2020 (exit day), the United Kingdom left the European Union in accordance with a ratified Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and the EU. The UK is now regarded by the EU as a ‘third country’, ie it is a country that is not an EU Member State or a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). During the implementation period (until 11pm UK time on 31 December 2020), the UK and the EU sought to negotiate and enter into an agreement that would govern their future relationship. The framework for a future relationship was set out in a political declaration, the terms of which were agreed at the same time as the Withdrawal Agreement. The EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), ie the post-Brexit trade deal between the UK and the EU, was finally agreed just days before IP completion day. Further to the agreement of the TCA, the European Union (Future Relationship) Bill was introduced to Parliament on 30 December 2020, and having completed all its Parliamentary stages

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note considers the impact that Brexit will have on obtaining evidence from an EU Member State for use in English court proceedings or providing evidence for use in proceedings in an EU Member State court when the UK leaves the EU. It considers the current position using Regulation (EC) 1206/2001, the Taking of Evidence Regulation and summarises the UK and EU’s respective positions and considers the likely potential outcomes, based on the information available. The Practice Note then considers potential issues which may arise when the UK exits the EU and potential regimes which may assist when seeking to obtain evidence. For an understanding of how a deal or no deal position may be reached, the House of Commons Exiting the EU Committee report: The progress of the UK’s negotiations on EU withdrawal (June to September 2018) at para [35] provides a useful flowchart. Current position It is often necessary to obtain evidence from overseas when dealing with disputes involving international

This archived Practice Note looked at the impact of Brexit on the UK corporate governance regime. It has not been maintained since May 2022. At 11pm (GMT) on 31 January 2020 (exit day), the United Kingdom left the European Union in accordance with a ratified Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and the EU. From this point, the UK was regarded by the EU as a ‘third country’, ie a country that is not an EU Member State or a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Under the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK remained bound by existing and new EU laws and subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union for a transition period (referred to in the UK as the implementation period) following exit day. However, it was no longer a member of the political institutions or governance structures of the EU. The implementation period ended at 11pm (GMT) on 31 December 2020 (IP completion day). On 24 December 2020, the UK and the EU announced they had

On 23 June 2016, the UK held a referendum on its membership of the EU, with a majority voting in favour of the UK leaving the EU, a process known as Brexit. On 29 March 2017, the UK government served formal notice under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) to terminate the UK’s membership of the EU. Negotiations between the UK and the EU relating to the withdrawal of the UK from the EU commenced in June 2017 and culminated in the Withdrawal Agreement, an international treaty implemented in domestic law by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (EU(WA)A 2020). Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, as of Exit Day (11 pm on 31 January 2020) the UK ceased being a EU Member State. However, in accordance with the transitional arrangements provided in Part 4 of the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK entered an implementation period during which the UK continued to be treated by the EU as a Member State for many purposes, see: Brexit—introduction

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. The UK public procurement regime derives from EU procurement laws and is therefore impacted by Brexit. As of 31 January 2020 (exit day), the UK ceased to be an EU Member State and its relationship with the EU became subject to the Withdrawal Agreement, which came into effect on 1 February 2020 (see below). For background analysis, see: Exit day—the practice area/sector view. The Withdrawal Agreement contains transitional arrangements, which provided for a transition period (referred to in the UK implementing legislation as the implementation period), which ran from exit day until 31 December 2020 (IP completion day). During this period, the UK continued to be treated as a Member State for many purposes, including public procurement. As a third country, the UK can no longer participate in the EU’s political institutions, agencies, offices, bodies and governance structures (except to the limited extent agreed), but during transition, the UK continued to adhere to EU law and submit to the continuing jurisdiction