The implications of today’s BREXIT vote in the UK are momentous and far from clear.
Tech businesses with operations in the UK and Europe will need to take stock and assess how the decision will impact their operations.
In the short term, there will be little immediate change. The vote provides a political, not legal, requirement for Brexit.
The legal route for EU departure is through Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. This provides:
•a 2-year negotiation period to sort out the “departure” arrangements
•If the departure arrangements cannot be agreed , the UK simply departs from the EU after 2 years
Once the Article 50 procedure is commenced it is irrevocable. It is likely to be commenced by an executive decision of the Prime Minister. It is debatable what the role of Parliament will be in this process.
Bird & Bird has produced a series of briefings on the implications of BREXIT – see http://www.twobirds.com/en/hot-topics/brexit.
Grayling have prepared a useful overview of the political implications – see https://gallery.mailchimp.com/979175d5afdd4b17adfdac01e/files/Grayling_briefing_EU_referendum.pdf.
Further updates will be posted as and when the situation becomes clearer
