Brexit ‘no threat’ to London

Brexit will not affect the quality or certainty of English law or the standing of London’s courts, the Lord Chief Justice insisted.

At the judge’s dinner at Mansion House Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd said rumours that English law is no longer certain and that London is no longer a safe forum to bring disputes are ‘fuelled by our competitors for their own advantage’ and are ‘unequivocally’ wrong.

Rumour he said, must be countered ‘if we are to ensure that the lie repeated does not’ be taken as truth. English contract and commercial law, he said, is unaffected by Brexit as they has never been within the scope of EU law.

‘London will continue to be a leading arbitration centre. Our legal profession will continue to be expert and world-respected. Our judges will continue to be drawn from the highest ranks of that legal profession. They will continue to be renowned for their expertise, impartiality and integrity,’ he said.

At the same event the Lord Chancellor, David Lidington, pledged to push the UK’s legal services as the country heads towards its departure from the EU.

He said Brexit will show Britain’s judges are the best in the world. ‘The message will be choose the UK and you will get a global guarantee of judicial excellence and integrity.’

Earlier the President of the Supreme Court, Lord Neuberger, saidBrexit could boostLondon’sstatus as the world’s legal centre. Once British judges are ‘left to our own common law devices’, he said, the courts will be able to ‘react more quickly and freely to developments in our fast-changing world’.