The House of Lords EU Justice Sub-Committee has today published a report looking at the effect of Brexit upon access to justice for families, individuals and businesses.
The report finds that the current system for civil justice cooperation across the EU member states works well. Disputes that cross borders, whether family or commercial, are currently settled by judgments that are enforceable across the EU, which gives families, businesses and individuals the legal consistency and predictability on which they depend.
However the Committee found that as Brexit takes effect unless the current system of ‘mutual recognition’ of judgments across the EU is duplicated, not only will the advantages be lost, but there will be real hardship for families and businesses, who could be left subject to national rules across 27 other member states. The key finding of the report is that alternatives to the existing framework of civil justice cooperation must be in place before the UK’s withdrawal is completed. The Committee concluded that falling back on common law and earlier international agreements that are less clear, simple or effective, would leave UK citizens with uncertainty and diminished access to justice.
Chairman of the Committee, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws said: “Unless the Government can agree a replacement of the existing rules on mutual recognition of judgments, there will be great uncertainty over access to justice for families, businesses and individuals.”
You can read the report here.
Image: Full Moon at House of Lords, by Fabiano Rebeque, licensed under CC BY 2.0.