The SFO faced a challenging 2019, with some high-profile acquittals, dropped investigations and new cases which were widely perceived as relatively underwhelming. We look back at the last 12 months, and set out what might be...more
1/8/2020
/ Acquittals ,
Barclays ,
Civil Liability ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Executives ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Evidentiary Standards ,
Fraud ,
National Crime Agency (NCA) ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
UK
The approach of the Serious Fraud Office (the “SFO”) to compelled interviews is a longstanding source of frustration for criminal defence lawyers. The beginning of Lisa Osofsky’s tenure as Director and the introduction of...more
11/21/2019
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Justice Act ,
Fraud ,
Interviews ,
Legal Professional Privilege ,
Legal Representatives ,
Motion to Compel ,
Privileged Documents ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
UK
Many will be aware of Agatha Christie's popular and much-adapted tale involving a witness for the prosecution whose evidence is undermined. But, in the real world, last month we saw the latest discrediting of an expert...more
The Law Commission has published its much anticipated report on reform of the UK's anti-money laundering and terrorism financing regime, and in particular of the system of suspicious activity reports ("SARs"). The proposed...more
6/20/2019
/ Amended Rules ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Commingling ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Criminal Liability ,
Financial Institutions ,
Money Laundering ,
National Crime Agency (NCA) ,
Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) ,
Ring-Fencing ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Terrorist Financing Regulations ,
UK
An informant is sent into the midst of a criminal gang. He is wearing a concealed device, crudely taped to his chest. Law enforcement agents listen in from the back of an unmarked van parked inconspicuously nearby hoping to...more
6/14/2019
/ Covert Human Intelligence Source (CHIS) ,
Criminal Investigations ,
European Convention on Human Rights ,
Evidence ,
Immunity ,
Informants ,
Organized Crime ,
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) ,
Sentence Reduction ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (SOCPA) ,
UK ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wiretapping
Five years ago, in the spring of 2014, Deferred Prosecution Agreements ('DPAs') were first introduced in the UK through the Crime and Courts Act 2013 ('CCA').1 Since then, the Serious Fraud Office ('SFO') has concluded four...more
5/11/2019
/ Conspiracies ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Immunity ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (SOCPA) ,
Shareholder Rights ,
UK ,
UK Bribery Act ,
UK Criminal Finances Act 2017