Corporate Crime & Compliance UK

  • June 19, 2026

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

    The past week in London has seen Royal Mail Pension Plan companies sue Wates Construction after investing in a Cambridge development project, law firm Ronald Fletcher Baker launch proceedings against several former partners and the rival firm they moved to, Lansdowne Law, and energy group VAROPreem bring an intellectual property claim against North Sea producer Viaro Energy and its chief executive. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • June 19, 2026

    UK Inheritance Tax Revenue Growth Slows

    Inheritance tax receipts for April and May reached £1.4 billion ($1.8 billion) in a slight dip in tax revenue compared with the 2025 tax take, despite frozen tax thresholds, according to official data published Friday.

  • June 19, 2026

    Software Co. Sellers Deny Inflating Finances In Criteo Deal

    Investors in a communications software provider have hit back against a £7.5 million ($9.9 million) claim brought by BidSwitch, denying that they fraudulently inflated the financial position of the company in an attempt to persuade the internet advertising broker to buy it.

  • June 19, 2026

    Mex Group Faces $170M Claim Over 'Misused' Freezing Order

    A business executive and two financial services companies said Friday that they are seeking more than $170 million from Mex Group over alleged losses stemming from a worldwide freezing order that they say the trading group weaponized after its conspiracy case against them collapsed.

  • June 19, 2026

    Appeals Court Scraps Redo Of Pfizer, Flynn Drug Fines

    The Court of Appeal ruled on Friday that the Competition Appeal Tribunal was wrong to remake a decision to fine Pfizer Ltd. and Flynn Pharma Ltd. £70 million ($93 million) for excessive pricing, finding that the process was tainted by procedural unfairness.

  • June 19, 2026

    EU Adviser Backs ECB Refusal Of Latvian Bank's Info Request

    The European Central Bank was entitled to partially refuse a request by ABLV Bank for correspondence in the lead-up to the Latvian lender being shuttered amid money laundering concerns, an adviser to the EU's top court has said.

  • June 18, 2026

    Microsoft Joins Fight To Preserve EU-US Data Transfer Pact

    Microsoft Corp. has secured permission to support the European Commission in its effort to shield a vital agreement that enables personal data to flow freely from the European Union to the U.S. from a French lawmaker's attempt to convince the bloc's highest court to strike down the transfer mechanism.

  • June 18, 2026

    PE Co. Director Denies Helping Trader Drain $9M Investment

    The director of a private equity company has denied conspiring with a bond market trader to divert a management consultancy's $9.4 million investment to his own company, saying the payments were part of a legitimate venture involving non-fungible tokens.

  • June 18, 2026

    Solicitor Reprimanded For Not Disclosing SRA Probe

    A lawyer has been reprimanded by a tribunal for failing to disclose in a bar application that he was being investigated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority over a potential breach of his anti-money laundering obligations.

  • June 18, 2026

    Hong Kong Spies Get 18 Years Over Shadow Police Ops In UK

    Two men were sentenced on Thursday to a combined 18 years in prison for spying for China through "shadow policing operations" that targeted Hong Kong dissidents living in Britain.

  • June 18, 2026

    FCA Closes Probe Into Drax Biomass Fuel Sourcing Claims

    The finance watchdog said Thursday that it had closed its investigation into Drax Group PLC over its concerns about what the company had told the market about the sustainability of wood it used for biomass fuel.

  • June 18, 2026

    FCA Turns To Early Action As AI Speeds Financial Crime

    The financial regulator has said that it is increasingly using supervisory powers and early intervention to prevent harm before launching formal investigations as technological advances and AI accelerate financial crime.

  • June 17, 2026

    Danish Financier Denied Tax Appeal For Missing Deadline

    A Danish financier and his company can't appeal a decision over a tax bill of over £866,000 ($1.2 million) despite his claim that they face a 200% tax rate, a London tribunal ruled, saying he had no good reason for missing a previous appeal deadline.

  • June 17, 2026

    Lawmakers Table Twin Anti-SLAPP Bills After Reform Delays

    A Conservative lawmaker was set to introduce a private member's bill in the House of Commons on Wednesday aimed at expanding protection against strategic lawsuits against public participation, known as SLAPPs, a day after similar measures were proposed in the House of Lords.

  • June 17, 2026

    Travel Tech Co. Hit With Record £1M Russian Sanctions Fine

    The U.K. government hit travel business Sabre Global Technologies Ltd. with a record £1 million ($1.34 million) fine for repeatedly breaching Russian sanctions by providing services to a sanctioned Russian airline.

  • June 17, 2026

    Former OPEC Head Acquitted In London Bribery Trial

    A former Nigerian oil minister and two alleged associates were cleared by a London jury on Wednesday of accepting or seeking bribes from energy executives.

  • June 17, 2026

    Sweden's Ikano Bank Fined $14.9M For AML Violations

    Sweden's financial services regulator said Wednesday that it had hit Ikano Bank AB with a 140 million Swedish kronor ($14.9 million) fine for violating anti-money laundering regulations.

  • June 17, 2026

    Visa Sued By H&M, Eurostar In Latest Swipe Fees Case

    More than 30 major businesses and institutions including H&M, Heineken and a university have sued Visa at a London court, alleging that the payment card company's fees and rules restricted competition and drove up prices.

  • June 17, 2026

    Audit Watchdog Revamps Enforcement Kit For Early Detection

    The accounting regulator said on Wednesday that it will go ahead with proposals to improve its approach to enforcement, setting out new options such as publishing cases it has pursued, which it said would offer it a "broad and more flexible range of routes to resolution."

  • June 16, 2026

    KC Defends Gardener Trust Deal In £2M Evasion Trial

    A senior barrister accused of cheating the public purse out of almost £2 million ($2.7 million) argued Tuesday that his former gardener perfectly understood that an agreement to be compensated for his services via a trust was not binding.

  • June 16, 2026

    Rathbones Halts New High-Risk Clients After FCA Review

    Wealth manager Rathbones Group PLC said Tuesday that it has paused onboarding new clients that require enhanced due diligence after a regulatory review identified areas of improvement for its consumer duty implementation and certain compliance, oversight and assurance arrangements.

  • June 16, 2026

    Fitch Accused Of Inflating Debt Ratings Before 2008 Crash

    Fitch Ratings secretly adjusted its credit rating models in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis to generate artificially high credit ratings for complex debt investments, motivated by a desire to grow its revenues, an investment firm said in its latest claim against a major rating agency. 

  • June 16, 2026

    Chinese Cos. Save Patent On Banknote Security Strip

    Two Chinese companies have convinced European appellate officials to revive their patent for an embedded security strip used on banknotes and credit cards, handing a loss to a security firm and plastics maker that argued its anti-counterfeiting magnetic strip wasn't new.

  • June 16, 2026

    Russian Shadow Fleet Ship Captain Charged Over Sanctions

    Prosecutors have charged the captain of a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker with circumventing the U.K.'s sanctions after the vessel was seized by special forces in the English Channel on Sunday.

  • June 16, 2026

    FCA Eyes Higher Fines After Setbacks In Staley Case

    The financial regulator has said it plans to hike the fines it imposes on individuals for misconduct following a series of legal setbacks that slashed its sanctions against senior executives. 

Expert Analysis

  • Reviewing EU Competition Policy 1 Year After Draghi's Report

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    Implementation of the Mario Draghi report’s proposals to revamp European Union competition policy is currently case-specific, making it less visible, and more needs to be done in the way of merger review and antitrust enforcement, say lawyers at Linklaters.

  • 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.

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