Jack Williams gives keynote address at Young Bar of Northern Ireland’s annual conference

Written by

On Friday 19 May 2017, Jack Williams  gave the keynote address at the Young Bar of Northern Ireland’s annual conference which was themed “The Legal Impact and Opportunities of Brexit”.

Jack was asked to address “The Constitutional Impact of Brexit”. He started by assessing the impact of R (Miller and Dos Santos) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [2017] UKSC 5 which was a key milestone in beginning the process of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. The case afforded the courts (and Jack in his lecture) an opportunity to address a range of matters relating to the operation of the UK’s uncodified constitution. Jack then looked ahead to assess the next key events along the path to Brexit, and in what ways the journey will test the UK’s constitution (and provide “opportunities” for legal practitioners). In this regard, Jack analysed future litigation possibilities in relation to each stage of the journey ahead, including: the Great Repeal Bill, the EU law obligations during the negotiation phase, the final deal (regarding both citizens’ acquired rights from an EU law perspective, and UK constitutional law questions concerning any final deal), and longer term issues post 29 June 2019.

Jack was junior counsel for one of the interested parties in R (Miller and Dos Santos) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [2017] UKSC 5 at both Divisional and Supreme court levels. He has recently been commissioned by Hart Publishing to co-edit a book (with Professor Mark Elliott and Professor Alison Young) on the constitutional impact of the case. Having also undertaken a traineeship at the CJEU with Judge Vajda and a secondment in the Bank of England’s EU Withdrawal Unit, Jack is well-placed to assist both private and public clients with a range of Brexit-related matters.

Philip Moser gives keynote address at this year’s Chambers Europe Awards

Written by

Philip Moser QC was pleased to give the keynote speech, on the UK application of EU-derived law after Brexit, at the Chambers Europe Awards 2017 ceremony and dinner, held on Friday 7th April at the Grosvenor House Hotel, London. The awards honour the work of national and international law firms across Europe and recognise a law firm’s pre-eminence in key countries in the region. They also reflect notable achievements over the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive strategic growth and excellence in client service.

Monckton presentations in Denmark on post Brexit regulation of the Aviation and Telecommunications sectors

Written by

At a Brexit seminar in Copenhagen at the Danish Association for European Law on 6 April, Tim Ward and Christopher Muttukumaru were principal speakers. Their presentations included post Brexit regulation of the Aviation and Telecommunications sectors.

The event was chaired by Professor Ulla Neergaard , Professor of EU Law at the University of Copenhagen. The third principal speaker was Ros Kellaway, head of EU and Regulatory group, Eversheds-Sutherlands.

The seminar was attended by private practitioners, academics and law students.

The speakers covered the following topics:

  1. ” All the world’s a stage ” – the UK Government’s White Paper on Brexit , including the UK’s new global outlook; the Article 50 letter of 29 March and the Commission’s response;
  2. 　 Aspects of post-Brexit regulation in the Competition field;
  3. 　 Aspects of post-Brexit regulation in the Telecommunications field;
  4. 　 Aspects of post-Brexit regulation in the Transport (Aviation) field;
  5. 　 The Great Repeal Bill – its purpose and coverage;
  6. 　 The roles of the national courts, of the CJEU and of the Commission in a post Brexit world.

There followed a very lively series of questions and answers about a post-Brexit future . Topics raised by the audience included questions about cartel investigations in a post Brexit world; UK support for the EU environmental acquis ; and the “what if ” questions about the future of Scotland.

The speakers’ written materials have been published on the organisers’ website here.

 

Monckton Chambers supports The Cambridge International and European Law Conference 2017 “Transforming Institutions”

Written by

Monckton Chambers was delighted to continue with its support of this prestigious annual event, organised by the Cambridge International Law Journal and held in association with the Centre for European Legal Studies. This year’s programme included Monckton’s Anneli Howard chairing the session on Institutional Transformations and the Court of Justice of the European Union and Philip Moser QC, joint Head of Chambers, speaking at the conference dinner. The event took place at The David Williams Building, Law Faculty, The University of Cambridge on the 23rd and 24th March.

Monckton Chambers supports the sixth annual Sir Jeremy Lever Lecture

Written by

The sixth annual Sir Jeremy Lever lecture was held on Friday 24th February, to celebrate the career of Sir Jeremy Lever KCMG, QC, a pioneer of both the practice and academic study of competition law in Europe.

The lecture titled “Dispute Resolution In International Economic Agreements: The EU And Beyond” was given by Judge Christopher Vajda and chaired by The Right Honourable Lord Dyson.

The event was followed by a celebratory dinner at All Souls College.

Monckton barristers speaking about ‘Brexit: The Future of International Trade’

Written by

Monckton barristers Thomas Sebastian and Professor Panos Koutrakos spoke at an event organised by UKLegalFuture at the House of Commons on 8 February 2017.

The topic of the event was ‘Brexit: The Future of International Trade’. It was chaired by Tim Ward QC and introduced by the Chairman of UKLegalFuture, John Davies (Freshfields). The audience consisted mainly of Members of both Houses, including the President of UKLegalFuture, Dominic Grieve QC MP.

Jonathan Faull (until recently Director General, European Commission, the most senior British EU civil servant and Head of the Task Force for negotiations with the UK) gave a keynote speech on ‘Leaving the EU but remaining part of Europe?’. He highlighted the legal and practical challenges of the negotiations between the UK and the EU and discussed the different stages that are prescribed in Article 50 TEU.

Professor Panos Koutrakos discussed the post-Brexit status of international trade agreements that currently apply to the UK. He outlined the legal and practical issues that arise from negotiating new trade agreements and examined the UK’s position in multilateral agreements (including the Unified Patent Court Agreement). His handout is available here.

Thomas Sebastian dealt with the so-called “WTO Option”. He addressed two questions of process: (1) Whether the UK will be able to rely on WTO rules post-Brexit even if other WTO Members object to its proposals for revised “schedules”? (2) Whether any post-Brexit UK-EU transitional arrangements will have to be approved by the WTO?　His presentation is available here.

Lourdes Catrain (Hogan Lovells International) focused on the negotiation of the UK-EU agreement. She referred to the White Paper (The United Kingdom’s exit from and new partnership with the European Union) and explored the different options for the UK’s future relationship with the EU, with emphasis on customs and regulatory standards.

 

Josh Holmes – new Queen’s Counsel for Monckton

Written by

Monckton Chambers is very pleased to announce the appointment of Josh Holmes to Queen’s Counsel.

The official swearing-in ceremony will take place on 13 February 2017.

The members and staff of Chambers warmly congratulate Josh on his new appointment.

The full list of QC appointments, announced on the 12 January,  can be viewed on the QCA website.

Michael Bowsher QC to speak at inaugural Singapore Academy of Law and Middle Temple conference

Written by

In September 2016, Michael Bowsher QC will be taking part in a conference, the first collaboration between the Singapore Academy of Law and the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple:

Recent Developments in Law and Practice in the UK and Singapore

Venue: Supreme Court Auditorium, Basement 2, 1 Supreme Court Lane, Singapore 178879

Event Date: 22 – 23 September 2016

The Honourable Judge of Appeal Justice Chao Hick Tin will provide the welcome to the joint conference entitled “Recent Developments in Law and Practice in the UK and Singapore”; the Right Honourable Lord Justice Christopher Clarke, Court of Appeal of England and Wales will introduce the event and the Honourable Attorney-General of Singapore and Honorary Master of the Bench, Middle Temple, Mr V K Rajah SC, will deliver the keynote address.

The programme presents an impressive list of speakers, comprising judges, experienced practitioners and academics from the legal community in Singapore and Middle Temple. The focus of this Conference will be on recent developments in contract law and trends in dispute resolution, with discussions on the latest trends in criminal law and family law as well.

Michael Bowsher will be speaking on day 1 of the event, part of a panel chaired by The Honourable Sir Vivian Ramsey on the topic of: Recent Developments in Vitiating Factors and Remedies

Kassie Smith QC and George Peretz QC speak at GCR Live 8th Annual Brussels Conference: The Bigger Picture

Written by

George Peretz QC and Kassie Smith QC are amongst the speakers at GCR’s flagship annual conference in Brussels on 11 and 12 July 2016, which will start to untangle what Brexit means for competition law and policy. George will be speaking on “State Aid and selective tax rulings: competitive advantage or tax evasion?”, and Kassie will be speaking on “Navigating Follow-on Damages: what every defendant (and plaintiff) should know”

Click here for full programme.

Philip Moser QC delivers Keynote Brexit Speech at Competition law event

Written by

Philip Moser QC delivered the keynote speech at a conference co-organised by Oxera, Hausfeld and Monckton Chambers entitled “Brexit: Keep Calm and Follow-on or Stand Alone?”, assessing the impact of Brexit on competition litigation.

It was followed by a panel discussion with speakers including Laura Elizabeth John of Monckton Chambers.

Follow this link for the full text of Philip Moser QC’s speech.