Corporate Crime & Compliance UK

October 14, 2025
EU Fines Fashion Brands €157M For Price Maintenance

The European Commission has fined fashion companies Gucci, Chloé and Loewe a total of €157 million ($182.2 million) for allegedly breaching the bloc's competition rules by restricting the retail prices of their products.
October 14, 2025
UK Gov't Should Break Its Tax Pledge, Legislators Told

The British Labour government should raise taxes in the coming autumn budget despite its pledge not to increase rates when it won the last general election, tax experts told a parliamentary committee Tuesday.
October 14, 2025
Email Warning Provides Rare Sight Into SFO Record-Keeping

Revelations that a Serious Fraud Office official instructed investigators to be wary of putting their concerns about a case in email illustrates how attritional fights over disclosure shaped the agency's approach at a time when it was under intense scrutiny over its handling of evidence.
October 14, 2025
Iraqi Cites Torture Risk In Appeal Over Extradition To Kuwait

An Iraqi national told a London court on Tuesday that he would face torture and inhumane prison conditions if he is extradited to Kuwait over an alleged £243 million ($324 million) fraud.
October 14, 2025
Ex-Mishcon De Reya Partner Can't Save Whistleblowing Claim

A former partner at Mishcon de Reya LLP has failed to revive his whistleblowing claim, as a London tribunal ruled there was no prospect of overturning its earlier decision that the claim could not be brought under British employment law.
October 14, 2025
US, UK Freeze Assets Of Alleged Cambodian Cyber-Scammers

The U.K. and the U.S. sanctioned on Tuesday a network of individuals that operates scam centers across southeast Asia by freezing London properties worth more than £112 million ($149 million).
October 14, 2025
FCA Gets BlueCrest Investors $101M Redress On Conflicts

The Financial Conduct Authority said Tuesday it has secured $101 million in redress for non-U.S. investors in a fund managed by BlueCrest Capital Management (UK) LLP and has given the firm a public censure.
October 14, 2025
Ford Cars Still Pumping Out Harmful Emissions, Motorists Say

Large numbers of Ford vehicles are still being driven around major U.K. cities, pumping out harmful polluting gases, more than a decade after the Dieselgate scandal emerged, lawyers for motorists suing car manufacturers said at the second day of a trial on Tuesday.
October 14, 2025
Sharp Rise In 'Nationally Significant' UK Cyberattacks

Britian's cybersecurity agency said Tuesday that it has handled an average of four "nationally significant" cyberattacks every week in the last year, more than double the number in the previous 12 months.
October 14, 2025
Close Brothers Sets Aside £300M For Car Finance Claims

Close Brothers said Tuesday that it is almost doubling its allocation to address the industry-wide motor finance compensation scheme as the merchant bank joined another lender in criticizing the Financial Conduct Authority's plans for redress.
October 13, 2025
Energy Data Co. Says Info Supply Cut-Off Was Justified

An energy data supplier owned by a consortium of British power companies has denied unfairly cutting off an energy startup, arguing that it refused to supply data because the startup repeatedly breached its deal by sharing data with third parties.
October 13, 2025
Hamlins Pro Faces SDT For Contempt Threat Against Reporter

The solicitors' regulator accused a Hamlins LLP partner at a London tribunal on Monday of improperly threatening to bring contempt proceedings against a journalist in a case over alleged corruption.
October 13, 2025
Car Makers' 'Brexit Island' Defense Panned At Emissions Trial

Carmakers want to live on a "Brexit island," where diesel vehicles in Britain are held to different emissions standards than other countries, lawyers for more than 1.6 million owners of diesel cars said at the start of a trial on Monday.
October 13, 2025
FSB Warns G20 Of High-Risk Delays In Financial Reform

The chairman of an international standards setter warned policymakers from the Group of 20 economic forum on Monday that countries are failing to finish financial reforms on time, risking global shocks.
October 13, 2025
Lloyds Sets Aside £800M To Cover Motor Finance Claims

Lloyds Bank said Monday that it has increased its provision for compensating customers tied to the motor finance misselling scandal by an additional £800 million ($1.1 billion), as the lender raised serious concerns about the Financial Conduct Authority's proposed redress program.
October 10, 2025
Carmakers Gear Up For Once-In-A-Generation Dieselgate Trial

One of the biggest and most complex group claim trials ever seen in the High Court will open Monday as more than a million motorists try to prove that major car manufacturers equipped their vehicles with devices designed to cheat emissions rules.
October 10, 2025
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

This past week in London has seen Paddington Bear's creators and Studio Canal sue the company behind Spitting Image, Blackpool Football Club's former owner Owen Oyston bring a fresh claim against the club, and Mishcon de Reya sue a Saudi investment group.
October 10, 2025
Google Trims Price Comparison Site's Competition Claim

Google pared down a price-comparison website company's claim that accused it of abusing its dominant market position at a London tribunal Friday, after the tech giant argued that it has a "cast iron" defense against it.
October 10, 2025
Think Tank Urges Reeves To Break Tax Pledge In Budget Plan

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves should raise income tax in the coming autumn budget to match spending commitments and reduce the deficit, a think tank said Friday.
October 10, 2025
Kennedys' Rekha Cooke On The FCA Senior Managers Regime

Rekha Cooke, a partner at Kennedys, talks about the Financial Conduct Authority's reforms of the senior managers regime, telling Law360 that businesses should treat the reforms as a reason to strengthen their internal controls.
October 10, 2025
Standards Setter FSB Issues Warning On AI Monitoring Gaps

National regulators must improve their monitoring of the adoption of artificial intelligence in the financial sector, a global standards setter urged on Friday, as unchecked exposure to the technology might expose critical vulnerabilities.
October 10, 2025
Agent Blames Law Firm For Bungled £1.1M Property Sale

An agent has blamed a law firm for a bungled £1.1 million ($1.5 million) real estate deal that ended with the lawyers settling a negligence case, as she denied allegations that she intentionally tried to sell a property she did not have the rights to.
October 10, 2025
Glazing Firm Boss Avoids Prison For COVID Loan Fraud

A court has handed a 22-month suspended prison sentence to a businessman who fraudulently obtained two loans from the state-backed COVID-19 pandemic-era bounce-back scheme and used the proceeds for gambling and cryptocurrency investments, the Insolvency Service has said.
October 09, 2025
FCA Outlines Next Steps To Stop Financial Crime At AGM

The Financial Conduct Authority outlined its next steps to prevent financial crime at its annual general meeting on Thursday, including further investment in its data-related technology and demands for higher level anti-fraud measures from tech giants such as Meta.
October 09, 2025
Clearview AI's £7.5M GDPR Fine Faces Renewed Scrutiny

A London tribunal has decided that a lower court was wrong to find that the U.K.'s data protection regulator lacked the power to fine Clearview AI Inc. £7.5 million ($10 million) over its collection of images of U.K. citizens from social media without their knowledge.

Expert Analysis

Key Points From EU's Latest FDI Screening Regulation Review

The European Commission’s recent assessment of the Foreign Direct Investment Screening Regulation indicates that with strong control here to stay, precautionary filings are likely to remain necessary, and member states should prepare for greater rule alignment to reduce inefficiencies caused by a current lack of synchronization, say lawyers at Linklaters.
UK Businesses Need To Plan For Accessibility Act Compliance

With the European Accessibility Act’s compliance deadline approaching this June, U.K. businesses trading in the European Union need to think broadly in addressing its requirements to ensure equality of access to the digital world, says Louisa Chambers at Travers Smith.
Interpreting Newly Released Consumer Fraud Complaints Data

The Financial Ombudsman Service’s latest complaint data focuses on scams and customer service, and demonstrates that as fraud is becoming rapidly more complex, financial regulators need to acknowledge that technology is here to stay and work together with firms to protect consumers, say lawyers at RPC.
Applying New FCA Guidance On Control Of Financial Firms

Buyers seeking to acquire or increase their stakes in U.K. financial services firms can streamline prudential review of their transactions by understanding the Financial Conduct Authority’s recently published guidance on updated change-in-control regulations, says Mark Chalmers at Davis Polk.
How Lawyers Can Work On Unmasking Beneficial Ownership

The Solicitors Regulation Authority's recent anti-money laundering report suggests that identifying ultimate beneficial owners in a transaction is one of the key day-to-day challenges that law firms face, and the solution lies in combining know-your-business processes with know-your-client verification, says Sam Ruback at Thirdfort.
Anticipating The UK's Top M&A Trends In 2025

Conversations with market participants are focusing on five key questions about 2025's transactional markets, ranging from issues of artificial intelligence, to the boom in takeovers and increased regulatory scrutiny, says Layla D’Monte at King & Spalding.
Takeaways On Freezing Injunctions After Dos Santos Ruling

The Court of Appeal's recent decision in dos Santos v. Unitel moved the needle in favor of applicants for freezing injunctions in two ways, say lawyers at Cooke Young.
What To Know About New Art Market Reporting Obligations

Recent U.K. sanctions reporting obligations on art market participants and high value dealers come into effect in May 2025, and businesses should review risk assessments and compliance controls to identify areas that may require strengthening, say lawyers at Steptoe.
Businesses Should Expect A Role In Tackling Fraud Next Year

If one word sums up a key trend in financial crime enforcement in 2024, it would be fraud, as enforcement agencies clamped down on consumer-focused crime — and businesses will need to be prepared to play a part in 2025 with the coming of the "failure to prevent fraud" offense, says Jessica Parker at Corker Binning.
What FCA's 2024 Changes Suggest For Enforcement In 2025

Though the Financial Conduct Authority is likely to enter 2025 hungry for enforcement wins after fielding intense criticism in 2024 over proposed policy amendments, firms can glean ideas for mitigating their risk from heightened scrutiny by studying the regulator's changing behavior from the year just past, says Imogen Makin at WilmerHale.
How The Wirecard Judge Addressed Unreliability Of Memory

In a case brought by the administrator of Wirecard against Greybull Capital, High Court Judge Sara Cockerill took a multipronged and thoughtful approach to a common problem with fraudulent misrepresentation claims — how to assess the evidence of what was said at a meeting where recollections differ and where contemporaneous documentation is limited, says Andrew Head at Forsters.
Practical Considerations For Private Fund Side Letters

Side letters are a common way of formalizing negotiated arrangements between a private fund and a particular investor — and as the number and length of side letters per fundraise steadily climb, managers must consider the material legal risks carefully, say lawyers at Dechert.
Planning For UK And EU Crypto-Asset Regulations In 2025

Fims should expect to devote the rest of 2024 and much of 2025 to fine-tuning their compliance frameworks to align with European Union crypto-asset regulations taking effect soon and U.K. regulators' plans for updating their own crypto-asset regime in the coming year, says Steven Lightstone at Morgan Lewis.
What To Know About Plans For A UK Green Taxonomy

Rachel Richardson at Macfarlanes discusses the purpose of HM Treasury’s recent consultation on a U.K. green taxonomy, explains why the tool — which would define what economic activities support climate objectives — is necessary, and considers drafting challenges the U.K. government may face.
Key Takeaways From EU's Coming Digital Act

The European Union's impending Digital Operational Resilience Act will necessitate closer collaboration on resilience, risk management and compliance, and crucial challenges include ensuring IT third-party service providers meet the requirements on or before January 2025, says Susie MacKenzie at Coralytics.