Ireland High Court strikes down legal challenge to Brexit News
Ireland High Court strikes down legal challenge to Brexit

[JURIST] The Ireland High Court [official website] on Monday struck down [Irish Times reports] a legal challenge [complaint, PDF] to Brexit [BBC backgrounder] on consent. Mr Justice Peter Kelly, president of the High Court, was told by parties on both sides that they consented to strike out the challenge without an order. The case was initially brought by Jolyon Maugham QC, a British barrister, and members of the Green party through crowdfunding [Independent reports]. The plaintiffs sought to establish that Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty [text] can be unilaterally revoked by the UK government, thereby halting Brexit, after it has been triggered. The plaintiffs were hoping that the High Court would refer the issues in the case for determination by the EU Court of Justice [official website]. The defendants, Ireland and the Attorney General, were contesting the jurisdiction of the court over the action.

Reactions to Article 50 being triggered have been mixed. The President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, responded by saying, “I will not pretend that I am happy today.” Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the Labour Party, claims the split will lead to a significant decrease in Britain’s GDP and fears that the Prime Minister will not maintain the protections for job security and living standards secured by the EU. In June a majority of UK citizens voted [JURIST report] to leave the EU due to a growing discontent with EU policies, including immigration. Implications of Brexit extend well beyond immigration, however. In March Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon [official website] sent a letter [JURIST report] to UK Prime Minister Theresa May [official website] formally demanding a second referendum on Scotland’s independence from the UK, stating that the removal of UK “not just from EU, but also from the single market” is not a move that the people of Scotland support or voted for, adding that such a move will have significant adverse economic consequences for Scotland. The same month EU President Donald Tusk [official website] laid out early plans [JURIST report] for negotiations with the UK. Also in March the UK Parliament released the Great Repeal Bill [JURIST report], outlining the process to solve issues that could arise as Britain leaves the EU. The Brexit bill received royal assent [JURIST report] from the Queen earlier in March.