Howard Kennedy LLP
9 Experts
9 Contributions by Howard Kennedy LLP Experts
PRACTICE NOTES
An individual is guilty of attempting an offence where, with the intention of committing that offence, they perform conduct that goes further than mere preparation for its commission. Attempt is an offence of specific intent; it necessitates a purposeful intention to commit the offence. The offence comprises both the criminal act and the requisite mental element. In every case, it is a matter of fact whether the defendant has advanced sufficiently towards the completed offence to amount to the act of attempt. Once the preparatory threshold has been crossed, the offence of attempt is made out, and it is no defence that the person then chose to withdraw rather than complete the offence. In most situations, attempts to commit criminal offences are governed by section 1 of the Criminal s Act 1981 (CAA 1981), though certain statutory exceptions continue to apply...
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
Civil recovery of misappropriated cryptoassets
This Practice Note outlines avenues to reclaim misappropriated cryptoassets and sets out the legal and technical hurdles arising from the characteristics of such assets and the speed with which fraudsters can deploy obfuscation tools to conceal them. It addresses the roles of following and tracing during recovery, the availability of interim relief in civil proceedings concerning cryptoassets, and the significance of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA 2002) to civil recovery in this field.
Crypto asset recovery
Crypto asset recovery means regaining access to digital property that is lost, stolen, or otherwise unreachable. Situations prompting recovery include lost wallet access, mistaken transactions—for example, assets sent to the wrong wallet address—or fraud.
Depending on the facts, potential approaches include:
Reconstructing passwords and seed phrases, using brute-force methods or partial backups
Conducting blockchain analysis to map transfers and pinpoint destination
Dispute Resolution
PRACTICE NOTES
There are three main inchoate offences in English law:
conspiracy — where two or more individuals have agreed to carry out a criminal act;
attempt — where the defendant has endeavoured to commit an offence and come fairly close to fulfilling the aim (see Practice Note: Attempt); and
encouraging or assisting a crime (previously incitement) — where the defendant has encouraged or helped another to commit an offence (see Practice Note: Encouraging and assisting criminality).
An inchoate offence is incomplete: it arises when a person takes steps towards committing a crime, yet their conduct stops short of the finished offence. The exception is conspiracy to defraud, where the intended outcome need not itself be criminal. That offence is considered separately; see Practice Note: to defraud.
Inchoate offences are not chargeable on their own, ie there is no standalone charge of
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
This Practice Note on crypto and digital assets sets out:
the shared features of cryptoassets,
their emergence via the Bitcoin White Paper,
how cryptography functions,
the difference between public and private keys,
nodes and mining (including proof of work and proof of stake),
an outline of blockchain,
categories of digital asset,
how crypto exchanges typically operate,
and the developing landscape of regulatory duties.
It offers a quick-access primer for dispute resolution lawyers dealing with civil disputes concerning crypto and digital assets. For guidance on why cryptoassets matter to dispute resolution lawyers and the kinds of claim that may arise, see Practice Note: Cryptoassets for Dispute Resolution lawyers.
Workable definitions of 'digital asset' and 'cryptoasset'
The terms 'digital asset' and 'cryptoasset' are frequently used as synonyms. For this Practice Note, which considers digital assets from a legal
Dispute Resolution
PRACTICE NOTES
Encouraging criminality
As of 1 October 2008, when the Serious Crime Act 2007 (SCA 2007) came into force, the common law offence of incitement was abolished. In its place, SCA 2007, ss 44–46 introduced the offences of encouraging or assisting, which are inchoate in nature, covering unlawful conduct that has not yet occurred.
Under the SCA 2007 there are three routes to liability for encouraging criminality:
intentionally encouraging or assisting an offence
encouraging or assisting an offence while believing it will be carried out
encouraging or assisting offences, believing that one or more will be carried out
An offence is made out where both of the following apply:
a person does something capable of encouraging or assisting the commission of an offence, and
that encouragement or assistance is intended to bring about the commission of the
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
This Practice Note examines spent convictions and rehabilitation periods under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (ROA 1974), as updated by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. It also looks at how earlier convictions affect criminal investigations, their use as evidence in criminal proceedings, and their relevance to sentencing.
What is a spent conviction?
Where a conviction or caution becomes spent, the individual is, for most purposes, regarded in law as if no offence had been committed. Consequently, under ROA 1974, people with spent convictions or cautions are generally entitled not to disclose them when applying for most roles. However, they may still appear on a Disclosure and Barring Service criminal record check (a DBS check, sometimes called a CRB check), which certain positions will require. Some convictions become spent after a defined period, which depends on the disposal or sentence imposed. For some
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
This Practice Note outlines sentencing in the magistrates’ court and Crown Court under the Sentencing Act 2020 (SA 2020) (Sentencing Code). The Sentencing Act 2026 (SA 2026), which secured Royal Assent on 22 January 2026, makes extensive amendments to the Code, including raising the maximum period a court may defer sentence from six to 12 months for offenders convicted on or after 22 March 2026.
Will I be sentenced in the magistrates’ or Crown Court?
All criminal cases commence in a magistrates’ court, but only summary-only or either-way offences are sentenced there. For details on allocation and sending, see Practice Notes:
Allocation and sending for trial—sending of cases forthwith to the Crown Court for trial
Allocation and sending—either-way offences not sent forthwith to the Crown Court for trial
Where conviction occurs in the magistrates’ court, magistrates or a district judge will pass a
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) operates two enforcement strategies:
one enforcement strategy detailing how TPR undertakes enforcement across its functions other than automatic enrolment, and
a distinct compliance and enforcement strategy aimed at employers with automatic enrolment obligations.
Together, these describe the outcomes TPR pursues and the means to deliver them, all to strengthen safety and security for pension savers. TPR also maintains a prosecution policy setting out how it will deal with criminal offences linked to occupational pensions. The enforcement and prosecution policies sit beneath its TPR scheme management enforcement policy, which states the overarching aims of its enforcement activity and offers insight into the framework TPR applies when choosing cases for enforcement action.
In November 2024, TPR stated that the swift expansion in the scale of occupational pension schemes meant members should be protected from systemic risk through a more
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
The Pensions Regulator’s scheme management enforcement strategy explains its approach to compliance and enforcement across defined benefits funding, defined contribution and public service pension schemes, while also describing the outcomes TPR may pursue and the means by which it could achieve them, all to strengthen safety and security for pension savers. Its prosecution policy and broader enforcement strategy set out the principal aims of its enforcement activity and give insight into the framework TPR applies when deciding which cases to take forward for enforcement action.
Initial considerations in TPR investigations
In its capacity as the UK regulator for work-based pension schemes, TPR has a suite of information-gathering powers to identify and track risks and to obtain evidence to support criminal prosecutions. These include:
requiring reports of breaches of the law and notifiable events
requiring reports prepared by skilled persons on specified issues
Corporate Crime
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