UK Supreme Court - Brexit judgment

The Supreme Court will hand down judgments in the Brexit litigation on Tuesday 24th January at 9.30 am.  The court's decisions and brief reasons will be delivered by one of the Justices - (very probably the President, Lord Neuberger).  The full judgments will then become available via the Supreme Court's website.

Before the court are three matters - (1) Miller and Dos Santos v Secretary of State for Exiting the EU; (2) a devolution REFERENCE by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland and (3) a REFERENCE from the Court of Appeal (Northern Ireland).

Miller and Dos Santos:


Here is a link to the Supreme Court's webpage on the case:

(1) R (on the application of Miller and another) (Respondents) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union (Appellant)

The webpage states the issue before the court to be:

"Does the Government have power to give notice pursuant to Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union of the United Kingdom's intention to withdraw from the European Union, without an Act of Parliament providing prior authorisation to do so?"

In early November 2016, the High Court held that the Secretary of State does not have power under the Crown's prerogative to give notice pursuant to Article 50 of the TEU for the United Kingdom to withdraw from the European Union - High Court judgment. 

Posts - Government case 1,  Government case 2 ...... Miller, Dos Santos and others 1 - Miller, Dos Santos and others 2 -  Miller, Dos Santos and others 3 - Miller, Dos Santos and others 4 - Miller, Dos, Santos and others 5.  Government response on final day.

Reference from Northern Ireland in Agnew and others:

(1) REFERENCE by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland - In the matter of an application by Agnew and others for Judicial Review

1. Does any provision of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 ('the 1998 Act') read together with the Belfast Agreement and the British-Irish Agreement have the effect that an Act of Parliament is required before notice can validly be given to the European Council under Article 50(2) of the Treaty on the European Union?
2. If the answer to question 1 is 'yes', is the consent of the Northern Ireland Assembly required before the relevant Act of Parliament is passed?
3. If the answer to question 1 is 'no', does any provision of the 1998 Act read together with the Belfast Agreement and the British-Irish Agreement operate as a restriction on the exercise of the prerogative power to give notice to the European Council under Article 50(2) TEU?
4. Does section 75 of the 1998 Act prevent the prerogative power being exercised to give notice to the European Council under Article 50(2) TEU in the absence of compliance by the Northern Ireland Office with its obligations under that section?

Reference by the Court of Appeal (Northern Ireland):

(1) REFERENCE by the Court of Appeal (Northern Ireland) - In the matter of an application by Raymond McCord for Judicial Review

Does the triggering of Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union by the exercise of the prerogative power without the consent of the people of Northern Ireland impede the operation of section 1 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998?

Posts - Devolution 1 ..... Devolution 2 ..... Devolution 3 ..... Devolution 4