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Join the Securities Litigation and Enforcement Group on LinkedInSimmons expands disputes offering with senior hire from SFO
International law firm Simmons & Simmons (“Simmons”) is delighted to announce today that Camilla de Silva is to join the firm as a partner in its dispute resolution practice in London. Camilla will join the global crime group on 4th May 2020. Camilla joins the firm from the Serious Fraud Office where she is Co-Head […]
Hit for six: the SFO obtains a sixth DPA – Lexology
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has announced its sixth Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA), entered into with Güralp Systems Limited (GSL) in October 2019. GSL is a relatively small company producing seismic measurement devices that admitted conspiring to make corrupt payments to an individual in Korea to help obtain business. It also admitted to failing to […]
SFO warns it’s struggling to cope with workload – NZ Herald
The Serious Fraud Office has warned it won’t be able to run as many white-collar criminal investigations and prosecutions over the next two years and is already struggling to cope with very large cases. The fraud investigation agency made the remarks in answers to followup questions from Parliament’s justice select committee following its annual review […]
Is it worth co-operating with the Serious Fraud Office? – FTAdviser.com
The Serious Fraud Office has published its Corporate Co-operation Guidance, outlining the level of co-operation required if an entity hopes to avoid a criminal prosecution or to enter into a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA). This includes identifying suspected wrongdoing, self-reporting, and preserving and providing evidence. However, there is a caveat: even “full, robust co-operation” is […]
UK fraud agency was undermined by ‘obsessed’ Theresa May’s attacks, former head says | MLex Market Insight
Former UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s attempts to disband the Serious Fraud Office undermined the agency and led to resources being diverted from fighting financial crime, its former head has said. At an event* this week, David Green spoke for the first time since his departure in April last year about the pressure the SFO […]
How effective is the SFO really? | ICAEW Economia
However, the report itself appears ambivalent about whether those aspirations are compatible with, or in opposition to, each other. Its summary of findings says that the SFO is facing clear challenges, identifying the central one as being that the organisation’s “sharp focus on delivery of casework” has “driven a culture of delivery which has, in […]
SFO boss: ‘Spend time in jail or wear a wire and work with us’
Lisa Osofsky, a former FBI lawyer who took over at the SFO last August, aims to work with HM Revenue and Customs to uncover wrongdoing by offering tax evaders the opportunity to wear a recording device in exchange for reduced jail time. “You can spend 20 years in jail for what you did or wear a […]
Former head of public prosecutions barred from dealing with CPS and SFO over conflict fears | City A.M.
The UK’s former director of public prosecutions (DPP) has been barred from contact with agencies such as the Serious Fraud Offices for two years over conflict of interest fears. Alison Saunders, who stepped down as DPP last year to join law firm Linklaters, is not allowed to deal with the Crown Prosecution Services (CPS) or […]
Serious Fraud Office in the spotlight again under new boss
‘Companies can’t go to prison, but individuals can,” says one lawyer involved in the defence of individuals at the centre of a Serious Fraud Office investigation. “People are more heavily invested in their defence than a business is – companies just want to put things behind them and move on.” His comments are pertinent as […]
Serious Fraud Office drops two major bribery investigations – Lexology
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has dropped its investigations into individuals at Rolls Royce PLC and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The decision to halt two of the agency’s most high profile probes comes at a significant juncture for the SFO. The probe into Rolls Royce was opened in late 2013 and led to a £500m Deferred Prosecution […]