Corporate Crime & Compliance UK

  • March 18, 2026

    MoD Whistleblower's Airbus Corruption Claim Gets Delayed

    A whistleblower's claim against the government and an Airbus subsidiary for damages will be delayed after a London judge said Wednesday that the court will not have enough time to determine crucial issues in the case.

  • March 18, 2026

    Oil Exec Denies Role In €144M Petro Biz Embezzlement Case

    An executive has denied that he acted as the shadow director of a Singaporean oil company that says it was the victim of a €143.8 million ($165.6 million) forgery and payment diversion fraud, rejecting claims he could have known about the misappropriation.

  • March 18, 2026

    FCA Denies Exerting 'Undue Pressure' During Odey Probe

    A manager at the City watchdog who conducted its supervision of Crispin Odey's hedge fund rejected the financier's allegations that pressure from the watchdog made other executives incapable of fairly disciplining him over allegations of misconduct.

  • March 18, 2026

    HMRC Counters Barclays Bid To Revive £800M Tax Deduction

    Barclays Bank wasn't entitled to treat as a corporate tax deduction £800 million ($1 billion) of £3 billion raised issuing debt instruments in a deal with Qatar and Abu Dhabi, HM Revenue & Customs argued Wednesday, because the bank gave away certain securities as a "sweetener" for the deal.

  • March 17, 2026

    Barclays Defends £800M Deduction For Financial Crisis Debt

    Barclays Bank defended its tax treatment of £3 billion ($4 billion) in debt instruments issued during the financial crisis, telling the U.K. Upper Tribunal on Tuesday that £800 million should be deductible as a debit arising from a loan.

  • March 17, 2026

    Mex Group Faces Losses Probe After Dropping £85M Case

    A London court on Tuesday ordered an inquiry into losses allegedly caused by a worldwide asset freeze obtained by Mex Group against two business executives and a financial services company, after the group abandoned its £85 million ($114 million) proceedings underpinning the freeze.

  • March 17, 2026

    Visa, Mastercard Win Shot At Overturning Fee Liability Ruling

    Visa and Mastercard won their bid for permission to appeal a ruling that found their swipe fee schemes had violated competition rules, with the Competition Appeal Tribunal ruling Tuesday that all the credit card giants' grounds of appeal merit a full hearing.

  • March 17, 2026

    Modi Rejects India Torture Protections In $2B Extradition Case

    Jewelry magnate Nirav Modi argued in a London court on Tuesday that his extradition to India over an alleged $2 billion fraud should be blocked because he would be at risk of torture during interrogation if he was prosecuted there.

  • March 17, 2026

    UK Joins Interpol To Launch New Global Fraud Enforcer

    The U.K. and Interpol launched a new international law enforcement unit on Tuesday in what the government hailed as a first-of-its-kind effort to hunt down organized criminal groups running scam compounds that target consumers.

  • March 17, 2026

    Director Owing £120K Tax Banned For 'Abusive Phoenixism'

    A business adviser who repeatedly set up new firms that left unpaid tax bills has been banned as a director for five years after his consultancy collapsed owing more than £120,000 ($160,000).

  • March 16, 2026

    Brokerage Lacks NY Ties In Pensions' Tax Claims, Judge Says

    A New York federal court threw out claims by three pension plans against a London brokerage firm that, according to the plans, executed fraudulent refund claims for them to the Danish tax authority, finding the brokerage had insufficient ties to New York.

  • March 16, 2026

    MoD Looks To Knock Out Whistleblower's Saudi Bribery Claim

    A London court is due to weigh whether a whistleblower has the right to sue the government and a former Airbus subsidiary for damages starting Tuesday amid allegations that he was sacked and blacklisted for exposing corrupt payments to high-ranking Saudi officials.

  • March 16, 2026

    HMRC Speeds Up Investigations Into Large Businesses

    The U.K.'s tax authority has reduced the length of its tax investigations into large businesses, according to data released Monday, though the backlog of open cases has continued to grow.

  • March 16, 2026

    Chelsea Fined Record £10.75M For Abramovich-Era Payments

    The Premier League fined Chelsea Football Club a record £10.75 million ($14 million) on Monday for breaching financial rules on payments to players and football agents during Roman Abramovich's tenure as owner of the team.

  • March 16, 2026

    Investec Denies £22M Loan Breached Sberbank Sanctions

    Anglo-South African lender Investec Bank PLC has denied that its lending provided funds to PJSC Sberbank in breach of sanctions, while pressing home its claim that two business executives owe it almost £22 million ($29.3 million) under loan agreements.

  • March 16, 2026

    Companies House CEO Apologizes Over Potential Data Leak

    The head of Companies House apologized on Monday over a technical error that went undiscovered for five months which enabled users to see directors' personal details and possibly amend information on businesses.

  • March 16, 2026

    FCA Proposes Major Overhaul Of Redress System

    The Financial Conduct Authority and the Financial Ombudsman Service set out landmark reforms to the U.K. financial services redress system on Monday, in line with a government commitment to introduce new legislation.

  • March 16, 2026

    UK Watchdog Publishes Flexible Governance Reporting Guide

    ​The Financial Reporting Council on Monday urged companies to improve the quality of explanations they provide under U.K. Corporate Governance Code provisions, warning that rigid compliance and boilerplate disclosures risk undermining effective governance.

  • March 16, 2026

    BHP Beats Criminal Contempt Claim In Brazilian Dam Case

    BHP won a bid in a London appeals court on Monday to dodge criminal contempt proceedings over allegations it lodged a case in a Brazilian court to halt claims in England connected with the collapse of a dam. 

  • March 13, 2026

    Amazon Wins Bid To Void €746M Luxembourg Privacy Fine

    A Luxembourg appeals court Friday threw out a €746 million ($854.3 million) fine imposed on Amazon for allegedly violating the European Union's privacy rules through its handling of personal data, finding the country's data protection regulator failed to properly consider two key elements and needed to rethink the penalty.

  • March 13, 2026

    NCA Freezes Apartments Linked To $2B Money Launder Probe

    A London judge on Friday upheld financial restrictions against a woman investigated in connection with a $2 billion money laundering investigation in Singapore after she failed to explain how she bought multimillion-pound properties in the U.K. without an income.

  • March 13, 2026

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

    In London, Estée Lauder accused Jo Malone's founder of intellectual property infringement, the wife of an Iranian businessman linked to a £75 million fraud sued several Iranian oil companies, HSBC sued U.S. property tycoon Michael Fuchs, and Charles Russell Speechlys brought a claim against a United Arab Emirates company it once represented in an international arbitration.

  • March 13, 2026

    Sony Says £2B PlayStation Class Action 'Misconceived'

    Sony hit back at a £2 billion ($2.6 billion) proposed class action claim that it raised prices and suppressed competition by keeping PlayStation console owners "captive" with software and PlayStation Store restrictions, saying Friday that the case was "fundamentally misconceived."

  • March 13, 2026

    HMRC Set To Fully Absorb Valuation Office By April

    The U.K.'s Valuation Office Agency will become fully integrated into HM Revenue & Customs next month, the office said, bringing property valuations into the remit of fiscal administration for the first time in decades ahead of the imposition of a new tax on high-value properties.

  • March 13, 2026

    FCA Bans Former Forex Exec Over AML Breaches, Forgery

    The Financial Conduct Authority said Friday it has banned a former foreign exchange trading company owner from working in financial services for his lack of honesty, introducing an anti-money laundering-related system against compliance advice and forging documents.

Expert Analysis

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Arbitrator's Conviction Upheld

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    The Supreme Court of Spain recently upheld the criminal conviction of arbitrator Gonzalo Stampa for grave disobedience to judicial authority, rejecting the proposition that an arbitrator's independence can prevail over a court order retroactively disabling the very judicial act conferring arbitral jurisdiction, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • 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.

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