Corporate Crime & Compliance UK

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SFO Suffers Serious Blow To International Search Powers

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office suffered a serious blow to its search powers on Friday when the Supreme Court decided investigators cannot force foreign companies to hand over documents held overseas, in a ruling lawyers say will hinder the prosecution of international economic crime.
March 05, 2021
Truck Buyers Rebuff Funding Challenge In UK Cartel Suits

A London court on Friday rejected a challenge to funding arrangements used by two groups of truck purchasers suing leading manufacturers over a cartel, concluding that the deals weren't covered by rules on damages-based agreements.
March 05, 2021
7 Questions For Covington EU Privacy Chief Daniel Cooper

Covington & Burling LLP's European data protection chief Daniel Cooper talks to Law360 about how data privacy practice has developed over the course of his career and discusses the latest litigation and enforcement trends.
March 05, 2021
SFO, Dechert Can't Force ENRC To Post £34M In Leaks Row

Kazakh mining company ENRC does not have to post £34 million ($47 million) cash in its bitter legal struggle with Dechert LLP and the Serious Fraud Office, as a judge said on Friday that its financial woes were obvious last year.
March 05, 2021
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

The past week in London has seen Scotland's ferry services sue its insurer, Britain's new high-speed rail service face another contract challenge and an ex-Qatari prime minister's company hit with a new suit. Here, Law360 looks at those and other new claims in the U.K.
March 05, 2021
Indian Banks Get Boost In UK Bid To Bankrupt Beer Tycoon

A consortium of Indian banks won permission Friday to appeal the adjournment of English bankruptcy proceedings seeking to recover £1.05 billion ($1.45 billion) from erstwhile Indian drinks tycoon Vijay Mallya, who is facing extradition to India on fraud charges.
March 05, 2021
Credit Suisse Winds Down $10B In Greensill Funds

Credit Suisse said on Friday that it is winding down $10 billion in four supply-chain finance funds linked to struggling Greensill Capital because of uncertainty over their value and the reduced availability of insurance against risk.
March 05, 2021
HMRC Extends Temporary COVID-19 Rules For Pensions

Britain's tax authority has given pension schemes an extra three months to submit their paperwork and is allowing them to be more flexible with payment breaks for clients because of the coronavirus pandemic.
March 05, 2021
UK Regulators Set Dec. 31 Date For Libor's 'Final Chapter'

Britain's financial watchdogs set a termination date of Dec. 31 for Libor in most currencies on Friday, urging banks and asset managers to quit the benchmark interest rate that underpins trillions of dollars of contracts but has been rocked by scandal.
March 04, 2021
HMRC Wins Appeal To Probe Utility Over Tax Structure

A lower court should have deferred to HM Revenue & Customs' decision to leave open a tax investigation of a power company consortium, the U.K. Court of Appeal ruled.
March 04, 2021
Justice Rose Tapped To Join UK Supreme Court

The British government announced Thursday that Justice Vivien Rose will join the U.K. Supreme Court in April, after a winding career ranging from competition specialist to HM Treasury adviser.
March 04, 2021
Cuba's €72M Debt Fair Game For Lawsuit, Fund Says

Lawyers for an investment fund on Thursday defended its decision to sue Cuba for €72 million ($86 million) in unpaid sovereign debt at a hearing in London, arguing it's not a "vulture fund" aggressively pursuing the country over decades-old loans.
March 04, 2021
BT Gets June Date To Fight £600M Landline Rates Suit

A tribunal ruled on Thursday that it will hear an attempt by a telecoms expert to bring a £600 million ($840 million) class action in London against BT Group PLC on behalf of millions of landline users by the end of June.
March 04, 2021
AXA Unit Can Pull HMRC Into £10M Premiums Fraud Case

A judge ruled on Thursday that a subsidiary of AXA XL Ltd. can sue HMRC as it pursues fraud allegations against an underwriter for £10 million ($14 million), describing the tax authority's attempt to avoid the claims as "smoke and mirrors."
March 04, 2021
Germany Suspends Greensill Bank Over Financing Risks

Germany's financial regulator has said that it ordered the closure of a subsidiary of Greensill Capital after it found the bank had incorrectly booked payments from a steel tycoon and was at "imminent risk" of holding too much debt.
March 04, 2021
FCA Fines Ex-Stifel Nicolaus Trader For Misleading Market

The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday it has fined a former Stifel Nicolaus trader and banned him from regulated activities for executing 129 so-called wash trades that misled the market about demand for his client's shares.
March 04, 2021
Gambling Watchdog Warns Caesars Execs After AML Risks

Britain's Gambling Commission has issued warnings to seven executives at Caesars Entertainment UK Ltd. following a probe into their conduct after the casino business landed into trouble over its poor checks against the risk of money laundering and on social responsibility.
March 03, 2021
SFO Unaoil Probe A Success Despite Exacting A Heavy Toll

The sentencing on Monday of a British businessman for conspiring to pay kickbacks to Iraqi public officials brings a successful conclusion to the Serious Fraud Office's occasionally troubled probe into one of the world's biggest bribery scandals.
March 03, 2021
Credit Suisse Denies Conspiracy In $2B Mozambican Scandal

Credit Suisse has denied knowing about a $2 billion fraud and bribery scam tied to loans the bank made to Mozambique, rejecting hedge funds' claims that it's liable for the actions of three former employees.
March 03, 2021
20 Reinsurers Settle Russian Plane Crash Suit With Insurer

Kapital Insurance has settled its High Court claim against 20 reinsurers over who should pay after a fatal jet crash in Indonesia, avoiding a trial scheduled for later this year.
March 03, 2021
Retailers Accuse Mastercard Of Downplaying Swipe Fee Costs

Major retailers pursuing Mastercard for damages for setting unlawfully high fees told the Competition Appeal Tribunal on Wednesday that the credit card giant cannot lessen the alleged harm to avoid a payout.
March 03, 2021
UK Guarantor Loans Shoot Up Financial Complaints List

The Financial Ombudsman Service has said that it handled more complaints about loans that people could not afford to repay than about any other financial product in the fourth quarter of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to play havoc with household finances.
March 03, 2021
Ireland Fines Stockbroker €4M For Conflict Of Interest Breach

Ireland's financial watchdog said on Wednesday that it has fined the country's largest stockbroker €4 million ($4.8 million) for breaching Europe's market transparency rules by failing to prevent conflicts of interest when its employees profited from a personal transaction with a client.
March 03, 2021
EU Eyes Reinforced Transparency Rules After Wirecard Case

The European Union's markets regulator warned national regulators on Wednesday that they must strengthen the policing of the bloc's financial transparency regime after a giant hole in the accounts of a German payments firm highlighted failings by the country's watchdog.
March 03, 2021
Edwin Coe Atty Resigns As Law Society Head Over Fee Row

A senior partner at Edwin Coe LLP will step aside as the head of the professional association for solicitors in England and Wales in the wake of renewed scrutiny about fees charged to a former client.
March 03, 2021
French Regulator Fines ING €3 million Over AML Failings

The French financial conduct watchdog has said it has hit ING France with a €3 million ($3.6 million) fine after it found shortcomings in the lender's safeguards against money laundering and terrorist financing.

Editor's Picks

The Biggest UK Civil Fraud Cases Of 2020

The past year saw major developments in civil fraud cases in the U.K., including a Supreme Court decision easing the limits on who can sue for damages suffered by a company and two rulings carving out the jurisdiction of courts in England and Wales.
Litigation Funding Demand Rises As Pandemic Suits Percolate

More corporate clients than ever have pursued third-party litigation funding in England this year, as the COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses to think more conservatively and try to prioritize the cash on their balance sheets.
Reforms Abroad For Litigation Funders Raise Questions In UK

Australia's recent decision to introduce a licensing regime for its litigation funders has stirred up attention across the industry, but experts say it appears unlikely that the U.K. will move beyond its current combination of light-touch regulation and court oversight.

Expert Analysis

Remote Working Tips For Lawyer Trainees And Their Firms

The prospect of joining a law firm during the pandemic can cause added pressure, but with a few good practices — and a little help from their firms and supervising attorneys — lawyer trainees can get ahead of the curve while working remotely, say William Morris and Ted Landray at King & Spalding.
Mitigate Key FCPA Risks With Tailor-Made Compliance

Multinational companies should take a pragmatic approach to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act compliance by being aware of key risk areas — such as inappropriate gift-giving, liability for third-party actions, and countries with recurring corruption issues — and implementing custom-designed procedures that evolve with their operations, says Howard Weissman at Miller Canfield.
High Court Ruling Checks Growth Of Bank Protection Duty

A number of recent claimant-friendly decisions have considered and broadened a bank's common law duty to refrain from making payments where fraud is suspected, but the High Court's recent judgement in Philipp v. Barclays Bank suggests a turn in the tide, say Paul Brehony and Kate Gee at Signature Litigation.
Start Preparing For Germany's Corporate Sanctions Act

Germany’s soon-to-be-adopted Corporate Sanctions Act carries a presumption of mandatory prosecution but also a defense in cases where reasonable precautions fail to prevent nonmanagers from committing crimes, so companies should start putting such compliance programs into place now, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.
UK Top Court Fraud Ruling Could Reshape Int'l Discovery

A recent U.K. Supreme Court ruling that KBR didn't have to provide documents held overseas to the Serious Fraud Office reveals the U.K. to be taking a divergent approach from the U.S. and has important implications for cross-border discovery and criminal investigations, say Katherine Toomey and Eric Lewis at Lewis Baach.
A Road Map For US Involvement In Europe's Cum-Ex Probe

The dividend arbitrage trading strategy known as cum-ex continues to face regulatory scrutiny in Europe, and stateside regulators may soon follow suit with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent American depositary receipt probe as a guide for enforcement, says Joshua Ray at Rahman Ravelli.
4 Lessons From Record Money Services Biz Fine

HM Revenue & Customs recently imposed a record fine on MT Global over anti-money laundering law violations, highlighting several AML enforcement and supervision considerations for money services businesses and their advisers, says Jessica Parker at Corker Binning.
UK Approach To AML Remains Robust Despite Brexit

Despite the seismic shifts that Brexit has brought to many other issues, the U.K. will likely continue to maintain and potentially heighten its regulatory oversight of anti-money laundering practices and procedures, says Nicola Sharp at Rahman Ravelli.
Finance Firms May See Increased FCA Enforcement This Year

Financial firms will likely see increased investigation and enforcement actions from the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority following Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic, including in the areas of financial crime, customer protection, operational resilience and conduct, says Tracey Dovaston at Boies Schiller.
SEC Settlement With Hedge Fund Offers Corporate AI Lessons

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent settlement with BlueCrest, over alleged failures to disclose its use of an algorithmic trading tool, highlights key governance, supervision, conflicts and enforcement considerations for companies using artificial intelligence and algorithmic-based applications, say attorneys at Debevoise.
Catching Criminals Could Get Harder Post-Brexit

Because the Brexit agreement weakened the U.K.'s systems for data access and intelligence-sharing with the EU, cross-border law enforcement and judicial cooperation in criminal matters may become more difficult and expensive, says Jonathan Pickworth at White & Case.
EU Rule Presents New Medical Device Compliance Hurdles

The European Union's new Medical Device Regulation coming into effect this May will create a revolutionary new legal framework for manufacturers, distributors and notified bodies, but introduces an urgent need to adapt infrastructure and data collection, say Sylvie Gallage-Alwis at Signature Litigation and Sylvie Gallage-Alwis at Exponent.
Evaluating Ethical And Legal Risk In Ransomware Payments

Deciding whether to pay the demanded ransom during a cyberattack is complex and requires a careful balancing of the risks to the firm's business against the reputational and regulatory risks, but companies can also prepare for this eventuality by taking concrete steps now, say Rob Dedman and Kim Roberts at King & Spalding.
ICJ Equatorial Guinea Ruling Could Alter Diplomatic Relations

The recent International Court of Justice judgment in Equatorial Guinea v. France, disallowing a sending state from unilaterally imposing its choice of premises for its diplomatic mission, bolsters anti-corruption efforts but may complicate future international relations, says Olivia Flasch at Signature Litigation.
Top Court MasterCard Ruling Lowers Bar For UK Class Suits

Although the U.K. Supreme Court's recent decision in MasterCard v. Merricks removes some certification barriers for collective actions, aspects of the court's opinion may provide comfort for defendants, say Louise Freeman and Harry Denlegh-Maxwell at Covington.