Ex-gratia payments meaning

Five former Glencore traders, company directors and the group’s ex-global oil chief, billionaire Alex Beard, now face numerous counts for funnelling corrupt payments to officials across West Africa, in a scheme stretching back over 15 years. According to the SFO press release, the accused are charged in relation to the allocation of various oil contracts covering Cameroon, Nigeria and the Ivory Coast between 2007 and 2014. Two defendants are further accused of falsifying invoices sent to Glencore’s London office, described as service fees to a Nigerian oil consultancy, from 2007 to 2011. The investigation may broaden after the SFO stated on 9 August 2024 that it plans to file additional charges as it pushes forward with its bribery inquiry. This ranks among the agency’s most prominent matters in very recent times and, given the scope of the counts, could be the very toughest examination of its capacity and advocacy in major court-room contests on the road to trial since it pursued senior leaders at Barclays. 'Having opted to charge in...

In this issue: Cross border criminal investigations Criminal procedure and evidence Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Consumer protection and cartels Environmental offences Financial services and pensions offences Food safety and hygiene offences Fraud, forgery, tax and theft offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Money laundering Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Cross border criminal investigations Ex-Goldman Sachs banker loses bribery extradition dispute A former Goldman Sachs employee has failed in his bid to block extradition to the US over alleged payments to Ghanaian officials, after a London court found on 7 June 2024 that the suspected offences were sufficiently tied to America to be tried there. See News Analysis: Ex-Goldman Sachs banker loses bribery extradition dispute. Criminal procedure and evidence Starmer could crack judicial crisis, former CPS chiefs say Keir Starmer’s strong...

What is the background to this case? On 6 May 2022, via an ex parte, without-notice application, the NCA secured nine Account Freezing Orders (AFOs) under sections 303Z1 and 303Z3 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA 2002), each lasting 12 months. Allegations were made that persons and entities connected to Petr Aven—described as a ‘prominent Russian businessman and pro-Kremlin Oligarch’—had effected suspicious payments and/or were retaining monies for his benefit around the time of his designation by the EU on 28 February 2022, and subsequently by the UK on 15 March 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Those persons and entities included Ingliston Management Ltd, a UK-registered ‘service company’ owned by Stephen Gater, which has been responsible for the running of Mr Aven’s three UK homes and for meeting the domestic and personal expenses of Mr Aven and his family residing there. It is alleged that the funds for these activities were provided by Mr Aven...

This practice note explores the distinctive position of individuals serving in the reserve forces, and the corresponding rights and responsibilities that employers owe to them. What is a military reservist? There are two principal categories of reservist. Members of the reserve forces can be called upon to support the regular forces when needed and perform the same duties as regular personnel: Volunteer reservists: civilians who join any of the four volunteer reserve forces (VRF)—the Royal Naval Reserve, the Royal Marines Reserve, the Army Reserve (formerly the Territorial Army), and the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. Reservists serve an initial three-year term and must re-engage if they wish to continue in the VRF Ex-regular reservists: former members of the regular forces who are transferred to, or enlisted or re-engaged in, the ex-regular reserve forces, namely the Royal Fleet Reserve, the Regular Reserve and the Air Force Reserve...

This Practice Note explores the equal pay for equal work principle under the Equality Act 2010 (EqA 2010) and, notably, what counts as ‘pay’. It addresses whether pay has to arise from contract and clarifies the concept of ‘pay’ in Article 157 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) (formerly Article 141 of the Treaty of Rome). It also reviews how termination payments, pensions and maternity pay are treated. The principle of equal pay for equal work Article 157 TFEU sets out the rule that workers are entitled to the same pay for the same work. Under European law, a distinction is drawn between equal pay (under Directive 75/117/EEC, the Equal Pay Directive) and equal treatment of men and women (under Directive 76/207/EEC, the Equal Treatment Directive and later measures). The Equal Treatment Directive, Directive 76/207/EEC, does not extend to ‘pay’. The equal pay for equal work principle has been described as fundamental to the European Union’s foundations. Article 157 TFEU has direct effect,...

There are occasions when charity trustees, or executors of a will that includes a charitable legacy, feel a moral duty to permit that gift to be redirected, in whole or in part, to someone who is neither the named beneficiary nor a beneficiary of the charity or its purposes. The clearest example practitioners may encounter is where a flaw or illegality in the will prevents an intended beneficiary from inheriting, with the result that the charity gains an unanticipated larger legacy, potentially the entire estate... What is an ex-gratia payment? The Charity Commission view an ex-gratia payment as one that involves: trustees waiving rights to money or property to which the charity is legally entitled, even if it has not yet been received a payment of money by trustees from the charity’s existing funds a transfer by trustees of existing charity property, other than money An ex-gratia payment is distinct from other forms of payment for which a charity may...