Leaving the European Union Without a Deal: The Legal Status of the UK's Financial Obligations Under EU Law Part I - EU Treaties and General Principles

The author considers, from a number of perspectives in EU law, whether, under Article 50 TEU, the accrued EU law obligations of a departing Member State will remain legally binding and enforceable against it following its withdrawal from the EU. A range of purposive and contextual arguments are considered, together with the interpretation of Article 50 in the context of general principles of EU law, and the conclusion drawn that there is wide support under EU law for obligations to remain legally binding following a State’s withdrawal. The author also considers the doctrinal question of whether a “principle of survival of accrued rights and obligations” may be formally recognised under EU law, and concludes that there is scope for the CJEU to recognise a principle of survival of accrued EU law rights and obligations, either as an autonomous general principle of EU law or as a particular expression of existing principles.