In 2022, the UK was forced to reckon with the charge of being soft on economic crime and being the destination of choice for kleptocrats seeking to launder their ill-gotten funds. No longer able to turn a blind eye to these...more
The UK government is taking further measures to tackle economic crime in the UK, reforming its corporate register, and giving extra powers to the Serious Fraud Office. The UK has published the new Economic Crime and...more
The United Kingdom recently passed the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act (ECA) on an expedited basis, bringing key changes to help the UK government and law enforcement combat financial crime....more
What is it? On 15 March 2022 the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 (the Act) received royal assent, having been expedited through parliament as part of the United Kingdom’s response to Russia’s invasion...more
Rushed through the Parliament in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the new Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act (the “Act”) received Royal Assent on 15 March 2022....more
In the early hours of 15 March 2022, following a wait of almost five years, the UK Parliament introduced into law the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act (the "Act"). The Act was fast-tracked at an...more
The draft Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill, published on 28 February 2022 and following an expedited passage through Parliament, received Royal Asset on 15 March 2022 to become the Act. Some of the...more
New legislation introduces further sanctions powers and aims to tackle financial crime by revealing identities of overseas beneficial owners of UK property. Following the UK government’s successive sanctions packages,...more
The long-awaited Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act received royal assent this morning, after having been fast tracked through the UK Parliament. Here are the key reforms of relevance to businesses....more
The long-awaited Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill (Bill) is being fast tracked through the UK Parliament. Here are the key reforms of relevance to businesses. ...more
On 1 March 2022, the UK Government introduced into Parliament the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill (the "Bill"). The draft legislation contains a number of measures designed to increase transparency and give...more
In January 2018, UK law enforcement agencies were granted new powers to pursue the forfeiture of assets. Unexplained wealth orders ("UWOs") initially grabbed the media's attention, but the relative ease with which UK law...more
In January 2018 the Criminal Finances Act 2017 (“the Act”) came into force. The Act brought in a number of important legal developments, including Asset Freezing and Forfeiture Orders (“AFFOs”) and the offence of failure to...more
In a landmark case last month, a businessman linked to notorious criminals surrendered £10 million in property, land, cash and other assets at the conclusion of an unexplained wealth order (UWO). This was the first successful...more
On 8 April 2020, the High Court discharged three Unexplained Wealth Orders (“UWOs”) relating to multi-million pound London homes allegedly purchased with the proceeds of crime. In its judgment, the High Court criticised the...more
A Court Ruling that May Resonate Across the Globe - The High Court in London recently struck down three “Unexplained Wealth Orders” that U.K. law enforcement had hoped would foil an alleged money laundering scheme by...more
This issue of Skadden’s semiannual Cross-Border Investigations Update takes a close look at recent cases, regulatory activity and other key developments, including DOJ guidance on the use of corporate monitors in criminal...more
The Situation: High-profile money laundering incidents have caught the attention of lawmakers and enforcement authorities in the United Kingdom. The Result: A new director at the Serious Fraud Office ("SFO"), the formation...more
On 30 September 2017, Part 3 of the UK Criminal Finances Act 2017 (the “CF Act”) came into force creating new corporate offences for failing to prevent the facilitation of UK or overseas tax evasion. Similar to the standard...more
The Criminal Finances Act 2017 (the “Act”) represents a further significant development in the approach to the investigation and prosecution of financial crime in the UK1. The new offence of failure to prevent the...more