In an article for LexisNexis, Rachel Cook analyses the SFO and CPS’s updated Joint Corporate Prosecution Guidance, exploring how it strengthens prosecutors’ hand under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 — and why it should be essential reading for corporates and advisers navigating the new failure to prevent fraud regime. To read […]
The Financial Conduct Authority has long taken a tough stance on insider dealing. Trading on inside information corrodes market integrity and damages investor confidence. Rachel Cook has co-authored an article with Christopher Coltart for Investment week diving into the FCA’s dealings with insider trading. To read the article, please click here. Please […]
Eight years after the UK parliament armed HMRC with corporate ‘failure to prevent the facilitation of tax evasion’ powers, the agency has finally pulled the trigger. Bennett Verby, a Stockport-based accountancy practice, has been charged under the Criminal Finances Act 2017 in connection with an alleged R&D tax credits repayment fraud. In this […]
HMRC has brought its first-ever criminal prosecution for failure to prevent the facilitation of tax evasion, charging an accountancy firm eight years after the offence was introduced. Stockport-based Bennett Verby Ltd is reportedly facing charges under the Criminal Finances Act 2017 in connection with an alleged R&D tax credits repayment fraud, alongside six individuals, including […]
HMRC is ramping up scrutiny of high-net-worth individuals, with increased funding and thousands of new inspectors driving a significant rise in investigations and prosecutions in the years ahead. In this article for EPrivateClient, Rachel Cook explores the new HMRC crackdown and what it means for the tax payer. To read the article, please […]
While the prosecution of wealthy individuals has decreased in recent years, the current Labour government has set HMRC a target of 20 per cent more prosecutions by 2030, for which they have provided additional funding to finance these additional prosecutions. In this article for the Financial Times Advisor, Rachel Cook examines HMRC’s increasingly aggressive […]
There has been a dramatic increase in the number of investigations into wealthy taxpayers. This trend is likely to continue, with HMRC having been provided with an additional £100 million in funding, part of which it announced earlier this year would go towards its plans to employ 5,500 more compliance officers. In an article […]
On 2 July 2025, the FCA published its long-awaited approach to non-financial misconduct (NFM). This includes a Policy Statement amending the Code of Conduct (COCON) to explicitly bring serious personal misconduct into scope, and a consultation on new guidance for both COCON and the Fit and Proper Test for Employees and Senior Personnel (FIT). […]
Rachel Cook has provided an analysis for LexisNexis following the recent launch of the government’s consultation on the regulation of private prosecutors and reforms to the Single Justice Procedure (SJP). In the article Rachel address the consultation, looking at what prompted it, the key issues it addresses, what changes might arise from it and how […]
The Prime Minister called for Mountbatten-Windsor to testify before the U.S. Congress as ‘Epstein’s victims have to be the first priority’ for justice. In a recent analysis for The iPaper, Nick Vamos explains that substantial legal obstacles make any testimony from the former Duke highly unlikely. He highlights that U.S. authorities have previously declined […]
