How has Brexit shaped the UK Supreme Court

Question 1

what was the assisted dying issue presented to the Supreme Court

Answer 1

• Paul Lamb and Tony Nicklinson are so disable they can’t take their own life
• They asked for family members to assist them in suicide e.g. stop feeding them etc.
• the issue is that if the family helped they would be charged for murder

Question 2

what was the assisted dying decision from the Supreme Court

Answer 2

• Supreme Court ruled against the appeal and echoed the decision made by the court of appeal and said it was a matter for parliament.
  -However, the Supreme Court said Parliament must have a look at the law

Question 3

what does the assisted dying issue reveal about the nature of the UK Supreme Court

Answer 3

• The Supreme Court is recognising that as an unelected branch they would rather leave such ‘grey area’ issue to the elected body and recognise parliament’s sovereignty

Question 4

in what ways do/did the HRA 1998 and the European Union impact the Supreme Court

Answer 4

• Under the European Union Communities Act (1972), the UK incorporated the Treaty of Rome into UK law
• This gave European laws precedence over conflicting UK statutes, whether past or present
• Initially, this just meant that the UK government could be called to account at the ECJ
• However, after Factortame (1990) the UK courts were permitted to ‘suspend’ UK statutes that were in violation of EU laws
• the HRA 1998 brings the articles of the ECHR into UK laws
• Gives Supreme Court the power to declare actions of the UK Gov. as incompatible until the HRA 1998
• HRA 1998 is not entrenched nor superior to regular statute law

Question 5

describe the European Court of Justice (ECJ)

Answer 5

• Oversees all EU law
• Brexit does not affect ECJ (lost jurisdiction in UK)
• the judicial body of the European Union. Its main functions are to interpret EU law

Question 6

describe the European Court of Human Rights

Answer 6

• Set up by council of Europe (nothing to do with EU)
• Brexit
  -international court that protects human rights within the Council of Europe

Question 7

how did Brexit impact the ECJ

Answer 7

• No longer has power over the UK
• UK court’s don’t follow new ECJ rulings, but may still refer to old ones
• Exception: the ECJ still plays a role in Northern Ireland due to the Brexit deal

Question 8

how did Brexit impact the ECHR

Answer 8

• no change
• The UK is still a member and follows ECHR decisions through the Human Rights Act

Question 9

what does the removal of the Treaty of Rome mean

Answer 9

a lot of the work that the UK Supreme Court was doing that related to EU law is no longer needed

Question 10

when was the Treaty of Rome signed

Answer 10

1957

Question 11

what is the Treaty of Rome

Answer 11

established the European Economic Community (EEC), which later became the European Union (EU)

Question 12

how did the removal of the Treaty of Rome make the UK courts more powerful

Answer 12

frees the court up to look at other issues

Question 13

how has Brexit ending the courts responsibility for interpreting EU law in relation to constitutional issues and human rights impact the branches of the UK Gov.

Answer 13

• the gap that this has left could be filled by judges issuing rulings to protect these rights and constitutional norms.
• as a result, the court and parliament are more likely to come into conflict with one another

Question 14

overall, has Brexit made the UK Supreme Court more or less powerful? Or has it made no difference at all?

Answer 14

Overall, due to the EU not being bale to intervene, the UK courts have gained the ability to enact their own justice in the UK and the courts can fill the gaps the ECJ have vacated