On 22 April 2020, Herbert Smith Freehills’ trade experts Lode Van Den Hende, Partner, and Eric White, Consultant, at our Brussels office hold a webinar with The Whitehall & Industry Group on what trade under WTO rules would mean for the UK. During the webinar, Lode and Eric looked into a number of issues, including … Read more

“The election result represents a decisive choice by the UK electorate to proceed with leaving the EU and makes any reversal of that policy extremely unlikely. While leaving the EU undoubtedly carries considerable economic challenges for the UK, the majority that the Conservative Party enjoys in the UK Parliament gives it the power and responsibility … Read more

This article was first published in Funds Europe (November 2019). In the context of Brexit, asset managers may consider equivalence as an option for accessing EU markets without obtaining separate authorisations in the absence of a financial services passport, particularly in relation to the management or marketing of funds, or other investment activities. The EU … Read more

Last week, the UK’s Parliament was dissolved: triggering the official countdown to the 12 December 2019 General Election. The outcome of this General Election may be a defining moment in the UK’s Brexit process. Our updated Withdrawal Agreement Q&A and Leaving the EU – The process and preparations sections of our Brexit Legal Guide, amongst … Read more

Today, Mr Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, confirmed that the EU27 will accept the UK’s request for a “flextension” of the current Brexit deadline (31 October 2019) to 11pm GMT 31 January 2020. This decision is expected to be formally confirmed through a written procedure adopted by the EU27 on Tuesday or … Read more

Last night the UK Government published the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill. The purpose of this Bill is to enable the UK to implement in domestic law where relevant: (a) the revised Withdrawal Agreement agreed between the UK and EU last week at the EU Summit; and (b) related EEA, EFTA and Swiss Agreements. The Bill … Read more

Today the President of the European Commission, Mr Jean-Claude Juncker, wrote a letter to the President of the European Council, Mr Donald Tusk, stating that the European Commission and UK Government have reached agreement on a revised Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland and on a revised Political Declaration. Mr Juncker commented in his letter that: “I … Read more

We were delighted to host a Brexit breakfast discussion, chaired by Nusrat Zar (Partner in our Public Law practice), on 26 September 2019 for our clients on the constitutional and political issues arising out the latest Brexit developments. This was timely as it followed the Supreme Court’s judgment the previous day on the unlawful prorogation … Read more