The UK Supreme Court’s “One Off” Judgment – Oxford Human Rights Hub

‘It was a “one off”. A conclusive determination on a series of seismic constitutional clashes: representative democracy versus direct democracy, the executive versus Parliament, and the role of the Court in the separation of powers. Judges examining the constitution against a seething political background. But the lions emerged from beneath the throne, unanimously, in a judgment that unlocked the doors of Parliament and clearly, soberly reasserted our sovereign legislature.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 9th October 2019

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

The Four Categories of Risk to Rights in the Brexit Process – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted October 9th, 2019 in brexit, EC law, human rights, news by sally

‘Writing only weeks before the (re)scheduled date of UK withdrawal from the EU, there seems little of which to be certain: it is still uncertain whether the UK will withdraw on a ‘No-Deal’ basis, or under a Withdrawal Agreement. Whatever the process of withdrawal, however, there should be no doubt that it will have a negative impact on the system of rights protection in the UK. Beyond the immediate loss of rights and remedies which arise directly from EU membership, the legal process of withdrawal has already indicated this negative impact: under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights will not be retained, just as general principles (including recognisably fundamental rights) are retained only where they have been recognised by EU case law but given no right of action or remedy. The 2018 Act also follows similar Brexit legislation in delegating wide legislative power to the executive (unprecedented in scale and scope) to amend or repeal retained EU law. While the cumulative effect of Brexit is as yet near-impossible to fully gauge, the aim of this post is to introduce four categories of risk to the protection of rights posed by the Brexit process.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 7th October 2019

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Krishan Nadesan: Asking the Impossible: Benn, Kinnock and Extending Article 50 – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘Boris Johnson seems caught in an impossible bind. The European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 2) Act – the Benn Act for short – obliges him to seek an extension of Article 50 on 19 October. He can extend, honour the law, but break his promises. He can refuse to extend, honour his promises, but break the law. Or he can resign. The Benn Act appears to trap the Prime Minister between these unpalatable options. Nevertheless, he may be able to escape. For the Act may ask the impossible.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 1st October 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Theodore Konstadinides, Noreen O’Meara and Riccardo Sallustio: The UK Supreme Court’s Judgment in Miller/Cherry: Reflections on Its Context and Implications – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘On 24 September, the UK Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Prime Minister’s advice to prorogue Parliament was unlawful, and that the resulting Order in Council and subsequent prorogation were ‘null, void and of no effect’. The litigation on the justiciability of prorogation and the lawfulness of the Prime Ministerial advice has led to one of the most engaging constitutional cases of recent times. As observers at the High Court and Supreme Court hearings, this post considers the context of the ruling, and certain striking implications of the judgment for the current and future Prime Ministers.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 2nd October 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

In Court – Stephen Sedley – London Review of Books

Posted October 2nd, 2019 in brexit, constitutional law, Crown, news, parliament, prorogation by sally

‘For at least four centuries the courts have contested the claims of monarchs to untrammelled authority. ‘The king,’ Chief Justice Coke said in 1611, ‘hath no prerogative but what the law of the land allows him.’ Although the historic settlement of 1688-89, which gave us today’s constitutional monarchy, left in existence a wide swathe of prerogative powers, these have become subject to two governing principles. One is that they cannot be enlarged. The other is that both their constitutional extent and their lawful use are subject to judicial review. If the rule of law is to mean anything, it has to mean this.’

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London Review of Books, 10th October 2019

Source: www.lrb.co.uk

Ep 95: A Rogue Prorogation – Law Pod UK

‘Emma-Louise Fenelon talks to Jo Moore and Jon Metzer from 1 Crown Office Row about the UK Supreme Court decision in R (Miller) v The Prime Minister and Cherry & Ors v Advocate General for Scotland.’

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Law Pod UK, 27th September 2019

Source: audioboom.com

Banking regulation after Brexit – OUP Blog

Posted October 1st, 2019 in banking, brexit, financial regulation, news by sally

‘It is a truism that Brexit will have a significant impact on banks and the wider financial services industry. The loss of passports by UK firms has received some attention from the non-specialist media, and is relatively well-understood. However, the loss of passports, significant as it is, is just one of many issues. Others have received no or little coverage outside the industry. In this blog, we will touch upon some of them. To do so, we need to step back and consider the very legal nature of a bank.’

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OUP Blog, 30th September 2019

Source: blog.oup.com

After 10 years, the supreme court is confident in its role – The Guardian

‘Next Tuesday, 1 October, marks the 10th anniversary of the supreme court. Over the past decade, its neo-gothic portico, beneath which lawyers, litigants, protesters and politicians parade, has become an increasingly recognisable feature of national life.’

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The Guardian, 26th September 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Sam Fowles: Cherry/Miller: What’s Next? – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘Yesterday the Supreme Court handed down its unanimous judgement in Cherry and Others v The Advocate General and Miller v the Prime Minister. The court found that the Prime Minister’s decision to prorogue parliament was unlawful and, consequently, null and void. This article aims to identify some of the immediate constitutional and political impacts of that decision.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 26th September 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Parliament was not prorogued: Michael Zander QC assesses the Supreme Court’s remarkable decision – New Law Journal

‘The decision of the Supreme Court is remarkable for many reasons. One is that it was produced in such a short time. Another, of immense importance, is that it is unanimous. A third is that it rejects the reasoning of the Divisional Court’s unanimous decision given by the Lord Chief Justice, the Master of the Rolls and the President that the issue was not justiciable.’

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New Law Journal, 24th September 2019

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Supreme Court: Suspending Parliament was unlawful, judges rule – BBC News

‘Boris Johnson’s decision to suspend Parliament was unlawful, the Supreme Court has ruled.’

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BBC News, 24th September 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Brexit: ‘No evidence’ of crimes by Leave.EU and Arron Banks – BBC News

Posted September 24th, 2019 in brexit, elections, expenses, news, political parties, referendums by tracey

‘The National Crime Agency has found “no evidence” of criminal offences after allegations against Leave.EU and its founder Arron Banks.’

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BBC News, 24th September 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Supreme court poised to rule against Boris Johnson, say legal experts – The Guardian

‘Boris Johnson would have no option but to recall MPs to Westminster if the supreme court rules he misled the Queen, senior legal sources told the Observer yesterday.’

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The Guardian, 22nd September 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

John Major’s lawyer attacks No 10 prorogation claims as ‘misleading’ – The Guardian

‘Downing Street put out “misleading” statements about the prorogation of parliament and published excuses for Boris Johnson’s five-week suspension of the Commons that are “not the true reasons”, the supreme court has been told by a lawyer for the former prime minister John Major.’

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The Guardian, 19th September 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Supreme Court: What happened in the suspension of Parliament case? – BBC News

‘This was no ordinary court case. The battle in the Supreme Court over the shutdown of Parliament is a historic test of the powers of the prime minister, MPs and the courts.’

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BBC News, 19th September 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Jeff King: Miller/Cherry and Remedies for Ultra Vires Delegated Legislation – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘The issue of remedies for any finding that the 2019 prorogation of the UK Parliament is unlawful is presently under discussion in pleadings in the joined appeals of Miller No.2 and Joanna Cherry MP (and others) in the Supreme Court. Essentially, the question concerns what must occur if the minister’s advice is found unlawful, and what is the effect of ‘declaring’ the Order in Council which authorized the prorogation of Parliament to be ultra vires. Does it mean prorogation never legally happened? Should Parliament have been in session all along? How is any summoning or recall to take effect?’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 19th September 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Stephen Tierney: Prorogation and the Courts: A Question of Sovereignty – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘The request made by the Privy Council that the Queen prorogue Parliament was a clumsy and inappropriate attempt to shorten the time available for parliamentary scrutiny of the Brexit process. That much seems clear from papers submitted to the Court of Session in Cherry. It is therefore no surprise that the Inner House was receptive to the petitioners’ argument that the advice given to Her Majesty violated the conventional purposes for which prorogation ought to be used and was therefore unconstitutional (Cherry, [1]; see also Lord Sumption). Where the court erred was in concluding that the act of prorogation was itself unlawful. The intimate relationship between the prerogative power to prorogue and the supremacy of Parliament precludes such a conclusion. If, as seems correct, a response to this breach of convention is warranted, it is one that can, constitutionally, only come from Parliament itself.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 17th September 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

A Tale of Two Judgments: Scottish Court of Session rules prorogation of Parliament unlawful, but High Court of England and Wales begs to differ – UK Human Rights Blog

‘The Scottish Court of Session (Inner House) today ruled that the Prime Minister’s advice to the Queen to prorogue Parliament was unlawful. The High Court of England and Wales today handed down its judgment on the same issue – and came to the opposite conclusion.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 11th September 2019

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Alan Greene: Miller 2, Non-justiciability and the Danger of Legal Black Holes – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘In R (Miller) and Others v The Prime Minister (hereinafter Miller No.2), the High Court of England and Wales found that the decision of the Prime Minister to advise the Queen to prorogue parliament was non-justiciable. In doing so, the judgment reveals the propensity of the judiciary to be much more protective of its own empire than that of the legislature. Ultimately, however, it is an approach that undermines both due to the creation of a legal black hole.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 13th September 2019

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

In defence of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act – UCL Constitution Unit

‘The Fixed-term Parliaments Act has come in for a lot of criticism of late, but is it as badly designed and drafted as some commentators would have us believe? The House of Lords Constitution Committee recently commenced an inquiry into the effectiveness of the Act to seek answers to this question. Robert Hazell and Nabila Roukhamieh-McKinna explain the background to the inquiry, and some of the key issues being addressed.’

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UCL Constitution Unit , 23rd September 2019

Source: constitution-unit.com