On 24 December 2020, after four years of in-depth negotiations, the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK) reached an agreement in principle on a trade and cooperation agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom in an eleventh hour to avoid a “no-deal Brexit”. The UK had left the EU in January 2020 after the conclusion of the Withdrawal Agreement. [1] The Withdrawal Agreement provided for an 11-month transition period during which the UK agreed to continue applying EU law and procedure and, with the exception of participation in EU institutions and governance, the EU continued to treat the UK as if it were a Member State (and not a third country). The transition period, which expired on 31 December 2020, should give the UK and the EU time to negotiate a framework for future cooperation. 3) The United Kingdom signed a trade agreement with Iceland and Norway on 2 April 2019. This agreement was signed to preserve the continuity of trade and was part of the preparations for a possible no-deal Brexit. It does not enter into force. The UK`s future relationship with these countries will be influenced by its relationship with the EU, as they are EEA member states. We will continue to work with Iceland and Norway to identify ways to maintain and strengthen trade with them as effectively as possible beyond the transition period.
The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and the UK includes preferential arrangements in areas such as trade in goods and services, digital trade, intellectual property, public procurement, aviation and road transport, energy, fisheries, coordination of social security systems, law enforcement and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, thematic cooperation and participation in Union Programmes. It is based on rules that ensure a level playing field and respect for fundamental rights. Agreements with the following countries and trading blocs are expected to enter into force from 1 January 2021, when existing EU trade agreements no longer apply to the UK. When negotiating improvements to these commitments in the ATT, as well as in entirely new free trade agreements with other countries, the UK should seek mobility arrangements that facilitate the secondment of lawyers to the offices of these partners or law firms. Without mobility, theoretical market access rules make no sense for lawyers. Legal services should therefore be included in the activities permitted for short-term business travellers. In addition, market access plans should explicitly recognise not only the right to meet with customers, but also to provide services and receive payments. Such activities should be allowed without a visa, work permit, economic needs assessment or other onerous procedures impeding the provision of services. In addition, visa processing times should be minimized if necessary, and the relevant eligibility criteria should not be more onerous than necessary. The Financial Times.
“A deal to end the illusions of Brexit.” Retrieved 28 December 2020. The ambassadors of the 27 EU member states voted unanimously to adopt the agreement on 28 December, and the British Parliament voted for it on 30 December. The agreement entered into force on 1 January 2021. The European Parliament voted in favour of ratifying the agreement on 28 April 2021. Legal services in the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement: A First Analysis The Financial Times, “Brexit deal current: reaction from around the world as the UK seals EU trade deal”. Retrieved 28 December 2020. He is also a member of the editorial board of UNESCO publications on legal bioethics. However, the ATT avoids at least the worst-case scenario, a no-deal Brexit. If no agreement had been reached before midnight on 31 December 2020, all trade between the EU and the UK would suddenly have been subject to World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules and tariffs. This would have significantly increased the cost of agricultural products, cars and other industrial goods.
Compared to the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), which would apply in the event of non-negotiation of a new agreement, the EU-UK Agreement has several positive aspects for the legal services sector. In general, the reaction to the announcement of the agreement indicated relief, but not enthusiasm. Prime Minister Johnson has touted the deal as a strengthening of British independence, but commentators generally consider that the UK has been forced to make more concessions than the EU, showing impressive unity, especially throughout the negotiations. It is estimated that the UK will suffer a GDP loss of 4% in the long term, compared to remaining in the EU. Although the impact on the EU is expected to be less severe, the agreement also imposes new non-tariff burdens on the EU. The full text of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the EU has been published. EU-27 representatives approved its provisional application on 1 January 2021 and it is now subject to ratification by the European Parliament and the UK Parliament. But – and this is a big but – the section should be read in conjunction with the Annexes of the ACC, which contain the limitations and exceptions of each Member State to this general principle. In other words, the above-mentioned fundamental right – that a UK lawyer in an EU Member State advises on UK or international law (including virtually via the internet or through a temporary practice in the UK) – is not automatic and can be governed by the internal rules of each EU Member State on how lawyers from third countries can operate in their jurisdiction, be replaced. However, the ATT clarifies that if EU Member States require UK lawyers to register to provide advice on UK and public law, this cannot mean requalification or admission to the local legal profession, nor can it lead to more onerous obstacles than those applicable to other lawyers from third countries.