Corporate Crime & Compliance UK

  • October 20, 2025

    HBOS Fraud Victims Hit Gunnercooke With Negligence Case

    A family driven into bankruptcy by a £245 million (£329 million) fraud against HBOS are suing Gunnercooke LLP, alleging that the firm caused them to lose more than £4 million by bungling a settlement with their bankruptcy trustee.

  • October 20, 2025

    Directors Jailed For £20M Fraud Involving Fake VAT Claims

    Six company directors were sentenced Monday for their role in a £20 million ($27 million) tax fraud involving a wholesale electrical appliance business that deliberately understated how much value-added tax was owed to HM Revenue and Customs.

  • October 20, 2025

    Mex Group Wins Partial Costs In Complex Fraud Case

    A London judge has ended trading services provider MultiBank's contempt battle with a Luxembourgish investment company director for failure to disclose his assets for a freezing order, ruling that there were "reasons to doubt" it had an arguable case.

  • October 20, 2025

    Solicitor Fined For Missing Fraud, Money Laundering Signs

    A solicitor who admitted missing signs of potential fraud and money laundering when carrying out property transactions on behalf of two lenders was fined £15,000 ($20,000) by a tribunal on Monday.

  • October 20, 2025

    UK Retailers Add To £675M Salmon-Farming Cartel Claim

    A group of major U.K. supermarkets has added a new part to its £675 million ($905 million) cartel claim against salmon producers, according to an entry on an online filing system that has now been made public.

  • October 20, 2025

    FCA Flags Money Laundering Risks At Corporate Finance Cos.

    One in 10 corporate finance companies has no documented business-wide risk assessment, the City watchdog said Monday, warning that many organizations might be falling short of money laundering standards.

  • October 20, 2025

    Secure Trust Bank Sets Aside £21M For Car Finance Claims

    London-listed lender Secure Trust Bank PLC said Monday that it plans to increase the amount it sets aside for an industry-wide motor finance compensation program to £21 million ($28 million), as it criticized the finance watchdog's approach to redress.

  • October 17, 2025

    Couple Among 14 Sentenced Over £28M Timeshare Fraud

    Fourteen people have been convicted and sentenced for their part in a £28.1 million ($37.7 million) investment fraud which involved them selling a worthless investment product to consumers on the promise of getting rid of their timeshares, prosecutors said Friday. 

  • October 17, 2025

    Shipping Giant Gets Early Win In Ex-Employee's Forgery Case

    A global shipping company has beat back a former employee's bid to be paid as he sues the company for allegedly forcing him to resign after he raised concerns that its environmental records had been forged.

  • October 17, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen Johnson & Johnson hit with a £1 billion ($1.34 billion) claim for allegedly selling contaminated baby powder, Carter-Ruck bring a claim against the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and Hewlett Packard file a probate claim against the estate of Mike Lynch.

  • October 17, 2025

    Man Gets Prison For Hiding Assets In $80M Dubai Bank Case

    A businessman who fraudulently helped three members of his Emirati family evade an £80 million ($107 million) judgment debt to a Dubai bank was sentenced on Friday to two years imprisonment for contempt of court.

  • October 17, 2025

    Global Watchdog Calls On Countries To Monitor Crypto Better

    An international securities watchdog called on countries Friday to monitor risks in crypto-assets and share regulatory information better across borders.

  • October 17, 2025

    Student Ducks Prison After Promoting Tax Fraud On Instagram

    A London-based student has become the first person to be convicted of inspiring others to defraud Britain's tax collector on social media after he used Instagram to encourage criminal attacks on VAT systems, HM Revenue and Customs said Friday.

  • October 17, 2025

    Ex-Solicitor Gets 4 Years For £400K Theft From Clients

    A former solicitor and part-time judge who misappropriated almost £400,000 ($537,000) from clients between 2003 and 2020 has been sent to prison for four years.

  • October 16, 2025

    Banks Must Do More To Stop Romance Fraud, FCA Warns

    The Financial Conduct Authority warned Friday that banks must do more to stop romance scams, which cost victims £106 million ($142 million) in 2024.

  • October 16, 2025

    OFSI Reports It Froze £37B In Shift To Proactive Enforcement

    The U.K.'s sanctions enforcer has revealed that over £37 billion ($49.7 billion) in assets were reported as frozen in the 2024-25 financial year, up more than 50% from the year before, in a signal of an increasingly proactive approach to enforcing financial penalties.

  • October 16, 2025

    FilmOn Founder In Contempt In Sex Assault Judgment Debt

    The founder of FilmOn and heir to a Coca-Cola fortune was found in contempt of court on Thursday for failing to provide information in proceedings to enforce in England one of several multimillion-dollar judgments over sexual assault claims.

  • October 16, 2025

    CMA Calls For Reforms To UK Veterinary Market

    The U.K.'s competition watchdog has called on the £6.3 billion ($8.5 billion) veterinary services market to provide better information on prices after a spike in insurance claims at major players drove up costs, despite no evidence of better services.

  • October 16, 2025

    MPs Launch Probe Into CPS Decision To Drop China Spy Case

    Senior parliamentarians said Thursday that they will launch a formal inquiry into the collapse of the Chinese spying case, heaping pressure on the Crown Prosecution Service just hours after the government published crucial evidence that caused the trial to be abandoned.

  • October 16, 2025

    UK Open To Behavioral Remedies During Merger Reviews

    The antitrust authority said Thursday that it is weighing a more flexible approach to remedies during merger reviews that would require it to regulate the behavior of the companies involved as it backs the government's growth agenda.

  • October 15, 2025

    Funeral Director Admits Fraud, Faces Trial On Other Counts

    A funeral director pleaded guilty to 36 fraud offenses at an English criminal court Wednesday in a case centered on wrongdoing in funeral plans.

  • October 15, 2025

    CPS Eyes Compensation Plan In £5B Bitcoin Fraud Dispute

    British prosecutors said Wednesday they will set up a compensation program for thousands of Chinese investors defrauded by a money launderer convicted in the U.K. as part of a scramble for £5.1 billion ($6.8 billion) in seized cryptocurrency.

  • October 15, 2025

    Ex-Clerk Must Repay £220K For Role In Legal Aid Fraud

    A London judge on Wednesday ordered a former legal clerk to hand over more than £220,000 ($294,000) following his convictions for leading a scheme to make bogus legal aid claims for criminal defense costs worth over £12.5 million.

  • October 15, 2025

    UK Adds Over A Dozen Countries To Global Minimum Tax List

    HM Revenue & Customs added more than a dozen countries to the list of states implementing Pillar Two's global minimum tax rules, the tax authority said Wednesday.

  • October 15, 2025

    Mercedes Denies Using VW-Style 'Dieselgate' Tech

    Mercedes-Benz told a London court on Wednesday that their vehicles do not contain the same technology installed by Volkswagen that sparked the "Dieselgate" scandal as car manufacturers began their defense of a major group claim by motorists.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Ways To Address The Legal Risks Of Employee AI Use

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    Employees’ use of unauthorized artificial intelligence tools has become a regulatory issue, and in-house legal counsel are best placed to close the gap between governance controls and innovation, mitigating the risk of organizations' exposure to noncompliance with European Union and U.K. data protection requirements, say lawyers at MoFo.

  • Opinion

    New US-UK Tech Deal Offers Opportunities To Boost Growth

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    The recently announced U.S. and U.K. Technology Prosperity Deal, encouraging businesses on both sides of the Atlantic to work together toward technological advance, will drive both investment in U.K. capabilities and returns for U.S. investors, says Peter Watts at Hogan Lovells.

  • What Draft AML Reforms Mean For UK Financial Sector

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    HM Treasury’s recently published draft regulations amending the U.K. Money Laundering Regulations, although not as material as expected, are a step toward a targeted risk-based approach, which the industry will welcome, say lawyers at Ropes & Gray.

  • What Key EU Data Ruling Means For Cross-Border Transfers

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    The European Union Court of Justice’s recent judgment in European Data Protection Supervisor v. Single Resolution Board takes a recipient-specific approach concerning pseudonymized information, but financial services firms making international transfers should follow the draft EU Data Protection Board guidelines’ current stricter approach, says Nathalie Moreno at Kennedys Law.

  • EU-US Data Transfer Ruling Offers Reassurance To Cos.

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    The European Union General Court’s recent upholding of the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework in Latombe v. European Commission, although subject to appeal, provides companies with legal certainty for the first time by allowing the transfer of European Economic Area personal data without relying on alternative mechanisms, say lawyers at Wilson Sonsini.

  • Supreme Court Ruling Stands Firm On Trust Law Principles

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    The U.K. Supreme Court’s recent strict application of trust law in Stevens v. Hotel Portfolio may render it more difficult for lawyers in future cases to make arguments based on a holistic assessment of the facts, says Olivia Retter at Quinn Emanuel.

  • FCA's Woodford Fine Sends Warning To Fund Managers

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    The Financial Conduct Authority’s recent decisions concerning Neil Woodford and the collapse of Woodford Investment Management mark an important moment for the U.K. investment industry, underscoring the regulator's focus on senior managers' personal accountability and the importance of putting investors’ interests at the heart of decision-making, say lawyers at Irwin Mitchell.

  • How Data Use Act Tightens Complaint Handling Procedures

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    Recently effective Data Use Act procedural requirements are coinciding with an artificial intelligence-driven increase in complaints from users about data subject access request responses, so organizations need to formalize their grievance process to prevent intervention by the Information Commissioner's Office and potential penalties, say lawyers at Womble Bond.

  • UK Supreme Court Dissent May Spark Sanctions Debate

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    While the recent U.K. Supreme Court's rejection of Eugene Shvidler’s appeal determined that sanctions decisions are primarily the government’s preserve, Justice Leggatt’s dissenting view that judges are better placed to assess proportionality will cause ripples and may mark a material shift in how future appeals are approached, say lawyers at Seladore.

  • What EBA Report Means For Non-EU Financial Firms

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    In a recent report concerning unregulated third country banks, the European Banking Authority decided not to extend a bank-to-bank exemption under the Capital Requirements Directive, raising a number of compliance issues for cross-border services, say lawyers at A&O Shearman.

  • HMRC's Automation Shift Likely To Alter Tax Adviser Role

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    HM Revenue & Customs’ recently released digital transformation road map promises greater efficiency and a modernized compliance regime, but the increased automation could also mean that the tax adviser role will become more proactive and more defensive, say lawyers at RPC.

  • What UK's New Prosecution Guidance Means For Compliance

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    Recent guidance from the U.K.'s Serious Fraud Office and Crown Prosecution Service, aligning their approach with the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, offers a timely prompt for corporate boards and legal teams to update their risk management frameworks, say lawyers at Signature Litigation.

  • Viral Comms Crises Create Dual Corp. Governance Threats

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    As legislative hearings increase in frequency and social media fuels their reputational impact, corporate legal teams face a new dual challenge that reflects a fundamental shift in accountability and demands new strategies, governance frameworks and organizational capabilities, says Joanna Ludlam at Jenner & Block.

  • How AI May Have Made A Difference In Monzo Bank Breaches

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    Artificial intelligence tools have the capabilities needed to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated threats, and such tools might have helped prevent the anti-money laundering failures that led to the recent £21.1 million fine against Monzo Bank, says Alexander Vilardo at Howard Kennedy.

  • A Softer Tack For Online Ads Marks Next Step In Data Reform

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    While the initiative of the U.K. Information Commissioner's Office to relax enforcement of advertising cookie consent represents a welcome attempt to balance privacy protection and commercial realities, several questions remain that will limit companies' ability to benefit from the U.K. proposals, say lawyers at Skadden.

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