As Theresa May’s call for a general election on 8 June came as a surprise to many in the City, law firm partners say their UK clients will be dogged by yet more uncertainty.
The announcement last month came as the polls suggest a clear lead for the Conservative Party, while May said she is seeking a direct mandate for her plan to deliver a smooth British exit from the EU.
White & Case London executive partner Oliver Brettle said: ‘The prime minister said she wants to have a strong mandate to support her during the Brexit negotiations. Any prime minister trying to operate with a fairly slender majority would have felt a bit uncomfortable.’
‘The reputation of the UK as a stable jurisdiction is slowly fading. The Scottish referendum, the 2015 elections, Brexit and now this. We’ve all had enough now. I hope we can put all this behind us soon and just get on with it,’ said another senior City partner.
‘The election offers the prospect of a much clearer mandate for the government’s EU negotiations.’
Gavin Williams, HSF
Herbert Smith Freehills corporate partner Gavin Williams (pictured) said an election could affect transactional markets in the short term: ‘It provokes yet more short-term uncertainty for the UK and the City, but with the prospect of a much clearer mandate – and therefore a marginally-strengthened hand – for the government in the negotiations with the EU.’
Meanwhile, Macfarlanes senior partner Charles Martin concluded: ‘For law firms, this may lead to an unwelcome pause in activity, but it’s too early to call that. Nothing can surprise us anymore, and few would doubt that there will be plenty more twists and turns, on both the domestic political and larger geopolitical level over the coming months.’
georgiana.tudor@legalease.co.uk
In court: the election effect
The snap announcement will also affect litigators, with certain pieces of legislation being scrapped or delayed as parliament is to be dissolved on 3 May ahead of the general election. On 20 April, House of Commons leader David Lidington announced that the Prison and Courts Bill had been dropped, which covered reform to prisons, the courts and low-value personal injury cases.
Another potential victim of the unexpected election is the Unified Patent Court (UPC), which could be delayed from becoming operational in December this year until autumn 2018. The court, which is open to all member states of the EU, could also be subject to uncertainty due to Brexit. Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan partner Kate Vernon said: ‘The Unified Patent Court was supposed to be the big flagship patent court for Europe. It would be a real shame if that got scrapped because of Brexit.’
DLA Piper partner Richard Taylor added: ‘The UPC has been at least 30 years in the making. It has surprised and dazzled everyone in the IP community to see us on the brink of being there, and therefore there would be a deep unwillingness to see it slide away.’
tom.baker@legalease.co.uk