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. By Stuart Alford KC, Clare Nida, and Mair Williams The UK has published the new Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill 2022 (the Bill), which focuses on reforms … Continue Reading
Recent judgments help to clarify purpose and threshold of unexplained wealth orders. By Stuart Alford QC, Oliver Browne, and Clare Nida The National Crime Agency (NCA) has had a mixed start to 2020, with appeals heard on unexplained wealth orders (UWOs) testing the new investigative tools provided under the Criminal Finances Act 2017 (CFA). What … Continue Reading
New SFO Director reaffirms her intentions and priorities for the agency. By Stuart Alford QC, Nathan Seltzer, and Christopher Ting Fifty days have passed since Lisa Osofsky took over at the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO), pledging to be a “different kind” of director. In her first days, Osofsky set out her priorities for the … Continue Reading
New director Lisa Osofsky confirms her focus on cross-border and corporate cooperation. By Stuart Alford QC, Nate Seltzer, and Clare Nida On 3 September 2018, in her first speech, after only one week as head of the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO), Lisa Osofsky laid out her plans for the agency. Upon announcement of her appointment, … Continue Reading
English Court of Appeal reaffirms privilege over internal investigation documents prepared in contemplation of litigation. By Jon Holland, Andrea Monks, Stuart Alford QC, Nate Seltzer, Dan Smith, and James Fagan In a much anticipated decision, the Court of Appeal has reaffirmed legal privilege protection for documents prepared during internal investigations (e.g., interview notes, forensic accounting … Continue Reading
New director Lisa Osofsky’s cross-border and corporate experience may lead the SFO in a fresh direction. By Stuart Alford QC and Clare Nida The announcement that Lisa Osofsky has been appointed as Director of the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) likely signals new strategic directions for the agency. For the past six years, the SFO … Continue Reading
By Stuart Alford QC, Daniel Smith and Yasmina Borhani Following a two-year investigation, Tesco PLC has announced that its subsidiary Tesco Stores Limited (Tesco Ltd) had agreed in principle the terms of a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO), subject to final judicial approval at a hearing scheduled for 10 … Continue Reading
By Stuart Alford QC and Daniel Smith Deferred prosecution agreements (DPAs) became part of the prosecutors’ toolbox in 2014, allowing for settlement instead of bringing a case to trial. Recent statements from the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) indicate an increasing willingness to seek DPAs. The SFO has concluded two DPAs so far, and we expect … Continue Reading
By Dan Smith and James Fagan On 25 September 2015 the United Kingdom saw its first disposal of the offence of failure by a commercial organisation to prevent bribery under section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010 (the “Failure Offence”). The Civil Recovery Unit of the Scottish Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service has reported that … Continue Reading
