Tag: European Union

Commercial Property

For the most part, it is UK regulations and legislation that affect commercial property in England, rather than EU legislation. There are some regulations, such as the Energy Performance Regulations and Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard Regulations, which are derived from EU Directives, which could now be subject to review by the UK Government. However, complete repeal of these particular regulations is unlikely, given the UK’s statutory and international treaty commitments to reduce carbon emissions.

Employment

The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020. As a result, the transition period will end on 31 December 2020. Businesses in the UK that process personal data are currently required to adhere to the EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR) and the UK Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018.

Litigation

Many businesses, particularly those dealing with EU entities, will have audited their commercial contracts throughout the Brexit transition period. However, as we approach the end of the transition period, fresh audits of existing contracts should now be considered. The difficulty many businesses are facing is, given that so much is undecided and last-minute discussions are continuing, it is not yet clear how their contracts will be affected.

Family Law

Parental abduction is when one parent removes or keeps a child from the country they normally live in, without the agreement of the other parent. A parent can only travel abroad with their child if everyone with parental responsibility agrees. Without this, a child cannot be removed from the UK, as this would be abduction - a criminal offence in the UK.

Wills, Probate & Trust

The EU Succession Regulation deals with the ability to choose the country whose law will apply to your estate when you die. This is important as if there is a difference in the law between the country where you made your Will and the country where the asset is it can lead to the wishes in your Will not being able to take effect.

Employment

The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020. As a result, free movement for nationals of the European Economic Area (EEA) (and Switzerland) will end on 31 December 2020. From 1 January 2021, the UK will operate a new points-based immigration system and EEA citizens moving to the UK to work will need to obtain a visa in advance.