Last week, the Home Office tabled an amendment to the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, setting out a failure to prevent fraud offence. According to the Home Office, this new offence is meant to “make it easier to prosecute a large organisation if an employee commits fraud for the organisation’s benefit” and “allow prosecutors […]
A few weeks ago, Eugene Shvidler, a billionaire who has been associated with Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, launched the first legal challenge to reach the London courts to the UK’s Russian sanctions regime. Shvidler is arguing that the Foreign Office made “significant errors” in deciding to freeze his assets. He also challenges that he is […]
In February, three French NGOs, Friends of the Earth France, Notre Affaire à Tous and Oxfam France, launched proceedings in France against BNP Paribas, Europe’s largest bank, in connection with its financing of fossil fuel polluters and thus failing to comply with its obligations under the French corporate duty of vigilance law, which came into […]
Traditionally, in England and Wales, a firm could be found guilty of some economic crimes only if its “directing mind and will” had been involved in the offense. This is the so-called identification doctrine. However, amendments to the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill are currently making their way through Parliament could change this. In […]
Last month, HM Treasury released a report on cryptoassets, in which it proposed a new, comprehensive regulatory regime. In this article for Business Reporter, Neil Swift, James Tyler and Michal Chajdukowski review the government’s plans to regulate the crypto sector. They discuss the timings of, and background to, the proposals, what key protections the new […]
Transition to net zero in the UK and in many other jurisdictions relies heavily upon consumer and investor pressure, combined with environmental social governance (ESG) disclosure requirements. While there are some sectors of the economy which are well placed to deliver in this regard, the development sector being one, there is a Wild West elsewhere, […]
With more businesses using sustainability as a marketing tool, in a bid to attract environmentally aware consumers or to secure investment in environmental, social and governance (ESG)-related funds, it was only a matter of time before “green” or “eco-friendly” claims would attract the regulators’ attention. In July 2022, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) […]
Fraud, bribery and corruption (FBC) in sport are nothing new. INTERPOL notes that criminal offences in sport “are a way for organized syndicates to generate high profits and launder their illegal proceeds, with limited risk of detection”. In recent times, the spotlight has been on sports with circular balls, with a host of scandals rocking […]
In the Spring of 2020, Eleanor Williams, a young girl from Barrow-in-Furness, in Cumbria, published pictures on social media of her alleged injuries, claiming she had been the victim of an Asian grooming gang. The allegations sent shockwaves through her community, even leading to social unrest and incidents of hate crime. However, Police investigations showed […]
The UK’s approach to whistleblowing needs reforming. Currently, the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) offers the only legislative “protection” for those reporting wrongdoing. However, this is limited to employment situations, such as speaking out against an employer, and offers no protection to those raising concerns about clients, suppliers, contractors and other parties. Self-employed workers […]
