While the Illegal Migration Act 2023 received royal assent on 20 July, it was not accompanied by a declaration under the Human Rights Act 2003 that its provisions are compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (‘the ECHR’), but with an “ECHR memorandum” stating that the government was of the view that Convention rights were not infringed. Nonetheless, the Prime Minister has acknowledged that the provisions “[push] the boundaries of what is legally possible while staying within the ECHR” and that the government would be “willing to reconsider whether being part of the ECHR is in th ..read more

The divorce petition has been lodged. The focus can now switch to the two other key components of a separation, of which one is the finances. The process of applying for a financial order, and what order is made at the end, will be an important factor in deciding where to divorce. Many clients assume that processes in England and in France are largely similar. However, this is not the case. In this blog, we summarise the key stages in both French and English financial order applications, including the application, supporting information, hearings, criteria and available orders ..read more

So, we have three months to go before the transition period ends and we leave Europe for good. We know that EU citizens resident in the UK before 11pm on 31 December 2020 are eligible to apply under the EU Settlement Scheme before the 30 June 2021 deadline.  Are we also clear about what will happen with EU citizens who arrive from 1 January to work? To an increasing extent we are and if you review the government guidance on this topic it is helpful and confirms that employers who want to employ EU citizens from 1 January will require a sponsor licence in order to directly sponso ..read more

A recent High Court judicial review ruling, in the case of R (Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 3274 (Admin), has deemed the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) to be unlawful on the basis that it is incompatible with the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement. The Home Office is intending to appeal. However, the judgement is highly significant as it could affect the rights of almost 3 million pre-settled status holders in the UK ..read more

Talk last week that prime minister Rishi Sunak is considering a growth visa for skilled migrants, an idea previously championed by Liz Truss, is likely to be welcomed by employers struggling to recruit talent ..read more

Pre-Brexit, some 8,000 financial services firms based in the EA or EEA relied on the mutual passporting regime to do business in the UK. Since 1 January 2021, such firms have been able to operate under a transitional temporary permissions regime (TPR). While some of those firms have now exited the UK market, most of those intending to continue to operate here are required to apply for full UK authorisation. The deadline for applications is 31 December 2022 ..read more

James Alleyne was recently asked to talk to an international audience in London about the UK’s position on regulating the crypto-space ..read more

Now that we have a new Prime Minister in situ, attention has quickly turned to Liz Truss’ actual policy agenda. Many comments have been devoted to the list of challenges she faces – every bit as serious as those encountered by almost any of the post-war Prime Ministers with the possible exception of James Callaghan ..read more

On 16 November the CJEU delivered its judgment following the publication of the Advocate General’s opinion on the UK-Ireland extradition questions which we wrote about here. The decision concerned the mechanisms for extradition to the UK from Ireland in two scenarios (1) under the terms of the withdrawal agreement from 1 February to 31 December 2020 and (2) under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (“TCA”) from 1 January 2021. The judgment confirms the AG’s Opinion that Ireland is bound by the withdrawal agreement and the TCA (“the agreements”) in respect of extradition arrangements with ..read more

On 9 November 2021 Advocate General Kokott handed down her opinion in respect of Case C-479/21 concerning Mr Sn and Mr Sd following a reference from the Irish Supreme Court which was made on 3 August 2021. Her opinion stated that the provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement and TCA which ensure the continuation of the European arrest warrant regime in respect of warrants issued by the United Kingdom (“UK”) during the transition period are binding on Ireland ..read more