{"id":4465,"date":"2020-01-31T17:11:08","date_gmt":"2020-01-31T17:11:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/?p=4465"},"modified":"2020-05-07T12:54:01","modified_gmt":"2020-05-07T12:54:01","slug":"leaving-the-eu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/2020\/01\/31\/leaving-the-eu\/","title":{"rendered":"Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law.jpg\"><img data-attachment-id=\"4467\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/2020\/01\/31\/leaving-the-eu\/leaving-the-eu-what-does-this-mean-for-family-law\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"720,540\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Leaving the EU What does this mean for family law\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law-300x225.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law.jpg\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4467\" src=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law.jpg\" alt=\"Leaving the EU What does this mean for family law\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law.jpg 720w, https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Leaving-the-EU-What-does-this-mean-for-family-law-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law? Many international\u00a0families are concerned they&#8217;ll lose access to justice.<\/p>\n<p>Are\u00a0you a cross border, UK\/EU family? This\u00a0blog is for you. But please remember to consult a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>lawyer<\/em><\/a> who is an expert in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/what-we-do\/international-family-law\" target=\"_blank\"><em>international family law<\/em><\/a> if you have any doubts.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>When\u00a0did the UK leave\u00a0the EU<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Friday 31st January 2020, at 11pm.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What about my child support, my divorce proceedings<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Are you concerned:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>your\u00a0maintenance or child support\u00a0will stop, or<\/li>\n<li>divorce proceedings will go off the rails, or<\/li>\n<li>children will be at a greater risk of abduction?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The answer is that <em>all<\/em> EU rules are staying firmly in place during the implementation period. So there&#8217;s really nothing to worry about &#8211; at least until the end of\u00a02020.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>How long is\u00a0the implementation period<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>1st February 2020 to 31st December 2020. The Government will negotiate our future relationship &#8211; including whether useful EU family law rules will continue &#8211; during this period.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What\u00a0are the useful EU family law rules<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>They cover:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>&#8216;first past the post&#8217; rule for starting divorces<\/li>\n<li>recognition and enforcement of maintenance orders, and the recognition of divorces<\/li>\n<li>enforcement of\u00a0contact and residence orders, and orders for the return of children<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>&#8216;First past the post&#8217; rule for starting divorces<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Why is this important? Because otherwise there could be proceedings going on at the same time in two different countries.<em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Is family law near the top of the agenda<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The Government\u00a0is already\u00a0working on\u00a0an important piece of legislation:\u00a0the\u00a0<em>Private International Law (Implementation of Agreements)<\/em>\u00a0<em>Bill. <\/em>This\u00a0means international families will have access to justice\u00a0under\u00a0certain\u00a0vital <em>Hague Conventions<\/em>. The Government is also aiming for us to sign up to\u00a0the <em>Lugano Convention<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What&#8217;s the Private International Law (Implementation of Agreements)\u00a0Bill<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The aim of this bill is to ensure three vital <em>Hague Convention<\/em>s\u00a0will still apply even after the end of the implementation period.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Which Hague Conventions are covered\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The <em>Private International Law (Implementation of Agreements)\u00a0Bill<\/em> covers:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1996 Hague Convention &#8211; protection of children in cross-border disputes.<\/li>\n<li>2005 Hague Convention &#8211; ensures:\n<ul>\n<li>there&#8217;s no confusion\u00a0about where a case should be heard, and<\/li>\n<li>any resulting decision is recognised and enforced in other countries.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>2007 Hague Convention\u00a0&#8211; the international recovery of child support. And makes it harder for parents who live abroad to avoid their maintenance obligations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>See page 28 of <em><a href=\"https:\/\/assets.publishing.service.gov.uk\/government\/uploads\/system\/uploads\/attachment_data\/file\/853886\/Queen_s_Speech_December_2019_-_background_briefing_notes.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">The Queen&#8217;s Speech<\/a><\/em> of December 2019.<\/p>\n<p>See my comments\u00a0about these Hague Conventions in\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/2018\/09\/21\/brexit-divorce-and-family-law\/\" target=\"_blank\">Brexit, Divorce and Family Law &#8211; what if there&#8217;s no deal<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em>In this blog I make the point that we will still need to incorporate EU regulations into our family law system &#8211; we can&#8217;t just rely on Hague Conventions.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What&#8217;s\u00a0the Lugano Convention<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The Ministry of Justice <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/news\/support-for-the-uks-intent-to-accede-to-the-lugano-convention-2007\" target=\"_blank\">reports<\/a><\/em> that there is support for the UK to join the Lugano Convention. Why is this important? The Ministry of Justice says:<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;The agreement protects the rights of 17,000 UK nationals living in the\u00a0<abbr title=\"European Economic Area\">EEA<\/abbr>\u00a0<abbr title=\"European Free Trade Association\">EFTA<\/abbr>\u00a0states and 15,000\u00a0<abbr title=\"European Economic Area\">EEA<\/abbr>\u00a0<abbr title=\"European Free Trade Association\">EFTA<\/abbr>\u00a0nationals living in the UK, ensuring that at the end of the transition period they will be able to enjoy broadly the same rights as they do now.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>But the Lugano Convention is by no means perfect. See my explanation of the Lugano Convention in\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/2018\/07\/13\/brexit-white-paper-and-family-law\/\" target=\"_blank\">Brexit White Paper &#8211; what you need to know<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3><strong>What are the\u00a0<abbr title=\"European Economic Area\">EEA<\/abbr>\u00a0<abbr title=\"European Free Trade Association\">EFTA states<\/abbr><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, and the EU.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Contact Family Lawyer Joanne Houston on\u00a0<a href=\"tel:01962%20217640\">01962 217640<\/a>\u00a0for an initial\u00a0consultation on <em>Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law?\u00a0<\/em>In this 20 minute session she will review your situation and how you can achieve your objectives.<\/p>\n<p><em>JUST FAMILY LAW are specialist divorce and family lawyers. We offer\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/2017\/06\/02\/pay-as-you-go-divorce-costs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pay as you go costs<\/a>. We offer\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/2019\/01\/17\/what-is-collaborative-family-law\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Collaborative law<\/a>\u00a0solutions tailored to your family\u2019s needs.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>The topics covered in this blog post\u00a0<em>Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law?<\/em><em>\u00a0<\/em>are complex<\/strong><strong>. They are provided for general guidance only. If any of the circumstances mentioned in this blog apply to you, seek expert legal advice.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>image for\u00a0<em>Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law?\u00a0<\/em>I love my mother by Himani Dsck on\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:I_love_my_mother.jpg\" target=\"_blank\">Wikimedia<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Leaving the EU: What does this mean for family law? Many international\u00a0families are concerned they&#8217;ll lose access to justice. Are\u00a0you a cross border, UK\/EU family? This\u00a0blog is for you. But please remember to consult a lawyer who is an expert in international family law if you have any doubts. When\u00a0did the UK leave\u00a0the EU Friday [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4467,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19],"tags":[368,175,605,52,604,353,606],"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4465"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4465"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4465\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4493,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4465\/revisions\/4493"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.just-family-law.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}