Thread by @StevePeers

1/ A few points about what to look for in this Advocate-General (AG) opinion coming next Tuesday.

First of all, AGs' opinions are not binding - so any headline that reads 'EU court says X' will not be accurate. The judges usually agree with the AG opinions, but you never know.

https://twitter.com/EUCourtPress/status/1067729625978163200

2/ The AG opinion will have to deal with the question of whether this case is hypothetical, because the UK govt has raised it. CJEU case law accepts that some cases are hypothetical, but defers a lot to national courts' assessment that they need answers to questions about EU law.

3/ Even if the AG agrees with the UK that this case is hypothetical, the usual practice in AGs' opinions is to discuss the merits of the arguments anyway in the alternative, in case the judges don't agree that the case is hypothetical.

4/ The AG opinion also has to address whether the Article 50 notification can be unilaterally revoked, since the national court asked exactly that question. If it can be, it might be with a qualification, to deal with the concern that revocation might be abusive or in bad faith.

5/ The opinion may touch upon the corollary question of whether revocation can happen with consent of the EU. If so, it might explain how that would work. (The Commission & Council legal service think it's possible, but only the Court can give a binding interpretation of the law)

6/ The opinion might possibly also touch on extension of the Article 50 period: definitely legally possible if UK & EU (unanimously) agree, but are there conditions? That's relevant not just to advocates of a referendum but those who want extension for more negotiation.

7/ Finally, a reminder that the EU courts have already touched on two other aspects of Article 50
a) EU law applies to the UK until Brexit day: eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/2018/09/brexit…
b) legal challenge to EU negotiation mandate is inadmissible: eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/2018/11/how-to… //