Consequences on English family law of the UK leaving the EU

The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020, but the law stayed the same until 11 PM on 31 December 2020.  From that time onwards, EU laws no longer applied in England and Wales in respect of new proceedings.  But the consequence of transitional arrangements is that EU laws will continue to apply for many years, perhaps decades, in respect of proceedings already commenced before the end of 2020.  This will have long term impact.  All family lawyers with a case involving a connection between England and Wales on one hand and an EU member state on the other hand need to be aware of these aspects.  For anyone with a divorce, maintenance order or children order it is important to know whether it may be automatically recognised and effective.  This summary note sets out some of the consequences.

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