CYIL vol. 11 (2020)

CYIL 11 (2020) THE WITHDRAWAL ACT OF 2018 AND THE EUROPEAN JUDICIAL AREA … from the Union 66 . The conventional system adopted by the Hague Conference in 2007, although undoubtedly useful, is not as effective as that established by Regulation 4/2009: Recognition based on conventional rules is not automatic, but is subjected to a specific procedure that implies some additional controls compared to those foreseen by the uniform European legislation 67 . As a result, there will be an extension of time and perhaps more food debtors will be offered to raise objections against the execution of the measures against them. It is true that in the United Kingdom there had already been doubts about the suitability of the particularly streamlined procedure envisaged in this matter by Regulation 4/2009 to adequately take into account the interests, also naturally legitimate, of maintenance debtors 68 ; however, it should be noted that the drafting of the withdraw act was based on the long practice developed in this regard at first with the application of the Brussels Convention and then with that of the subsequent Brussels I Regulation (operating in the field of maintenance obligations up to entry into force of Regulation 4/2009) 69 which had inspired the provisions on which all the Member States of the Union, including this time also Denmark, had found the necessary unanimity. 7. The effect of Brexit on the functioning of other rules of private international law contained in European legislation: The case of financial markets European Union legislation also contains other provisions, in addition to those contained in the acts specifically adopted in the framework of judicial cooperation in civil matters, intended to regulate particular aspects of cross-border legal relations and on which the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the Union can operate have repercussions. A particularly significant example concerns the market for financial instruments, a sector of great importance for the British economy 70 . The prominent position that the United Kingdom has achieved in this matter could be jeopardized by the change in the legal framework. Local businesses will in fact lose the right to the “passport” required to operate on the European market, with the consequence that they will have to undergo the “equivalence assessment” provided for 66 In relations between the United Kingdom and Denmark, as the latter is not a party to the Convention, two other instruments relating to the matter will re-enter force: the 1956 New York Convention on the recovery of food abroad and the Hague Convention of 2 October 1973 on the recognition and execution of decisions on maintenance obligations, each with its own subjective and objective scope. However, these two conventions could return to apply, as indicated in the Explanatory Memorandum annexed to the Regulations, also in relations with the other Member States of the Union in the event that for any reason, and in particular for reasons of temporal efficacy, the Convention of the 2007 Hague should not completely replace the scope of the same. 67 WALKER, L. Maintenance and child support in private international law , (Bloomsbury Publishing, New York, 2015). DUTTA, A. ‘Brexit and international family law from a continental perspective’, (2017), 29 CFLQ 199ss. 68 WALKER, L. Maintenance and child support in private international law , op. cit., pp. 105ss. 69 Council Regulation n. 4/2009 on Jurisdiction, Applicable Law, Recognition and Enforcement of Decisions and Cooperation in Matters Relating to Maintenance Obligations, 2008 OJ (L 7) 1. This Regulation is applicable through Regulation 1107/2009, art. 15, 2009 O.J (L 3069) 1, (EC). See from the CJEU: joined cases C-400/13 and C-408/13, Sophia Marie Nicole Sanders v. David Verhaegen and Barbara Huber v. Manfred Huber of 18 December 2014, ECLI:EU:C:2014:2461, published in the electronic Reports of the cases. In argument: BAUGUIET, N., DECHAMPS, M., MARY, J. Actualités en droit de la familie , (ed. Larcier, Bruxelles, 2016). 70 According to data released by the British government, the sector employs over one million workers, generates 7% of the total GDP and represents 12% of the country’s tax revenues; on the possible effects of Brexit on financial markets, the House of Commons has prepared a specific report: Brexit and financial services, Briefing paper, 13 December 2019.

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