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R (Greyhound Board of Great Britain Ltd) v Welsh Ministers [2026] EWHC 670 (Admin) What are the practical implications of this case? The ruling reinforces the constitutional divide between the courts and the legislature. It explains that the scheme and framework of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (GWA 2006) embody that separation of powers, and that any judicial attempt to recognise and enforce a common law obligation on Welsh Ministers to consult prior to introducing legislation in the Senedd would trespass upon that boundary. This is not a departure from established principle; case law has already upheld comparable rules for lawmakers in Scotland and at Westminster. However, this is the first express confirmation of the position for Welsh lawmakers, and the first time this dimension of the GWA 2006 has been analysed in such depth. The court examined earlier
The solution arrived through the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC), a quasi‑judicial body handling mass claims, created under UN Security Council Resolution 687. By addressing environmental harm—most notably via its ‘F4’ claim class—the UNCC set a seminal benchmark shaping how international law and contemporary arbitral panels allocate financial responsibility for wartime ecological devastation. With present-day wars in areas such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East bringing dam breaches, strikes on chemical facilities, and the burning of farmland, the UNCC’s legacy endures as an essential reference point for states, global investors, and companies engaged in post‑conflict arbitration. The F4 claims: Quantifying the unquantifiable Prior to the 1990s, mechanisms in international law for war reparations overwhelmingly favoured property loss, foregone earnings, and bodily injury. The natural world was commonly treated as a mute, non-compensable victim of armed hostilities...
Understanding the farming business as a business Many farms still use long-standing structures that arose by habit, not strategy. Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common. While once effective, such setups can cause major issues around succession, tax planning and involving the next generation. A corporate team can take a fresh, business-led view of the farm, asking: Who owns the land and other critical assets? Who manages daily operations? Who carries the risk and who enjoys the return? What is the enduring plan for succession? From this review, the team can confirm whether the current setup is fit for purpose or if an alternative — for example an updated partnership agreement, a company, a limited liability partnership, or a blended model — would better meet the family’s aims. Tax efficiency through joined-up advice Tax sits at the centre of most
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The SFO has charged United Insurance Brokers with failing to prevent its associates from paying bribes in Ecuador—the first time the agency is preparing to go to trial over the adequacy of a company's compliance programmes. Experts say the case also signals—amid debate over the SFO’s priorities and doubts about the near‑term trajectory of international corruption inquiries—that the agency remains firmly engaged in tackling bribery at home and abroad today. Jonah Anderson, a partner at White & Case LLP, noted that although there now appear to be fewer bribery prosecutions than five or ten years ago and the global environment is shifting, the SFO continues to act as a vigorous corporate bribery enforcer. The UK’s anti‑bribery regime renders companies criminally responsible if they fail to stop employees or associated persons from making illicit payments to secure business in the UK or anywhere in the world. Since its...
The task force brings together: The UK Serious Fraud Office ( SFO) France's National Financial Prosecutor's Office, Parquet National Financier ( PNF) The Swiss Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland ( OAG) Its founding declaration unequivocally affirmed the trio's unwavering resolve to combat bribery and corruption under domestic and international legal regimes. Businesses within the reach of these authorities' jurisdictions—including US companies operating in Europe—should continue to uphold rigorous, well-embedded anti-corruption programmes. Purpose of the task force Its creation crowns more than ten years of close operational partnership among the three nations, spanning tightly coordinated cross-border enquiries, systematic intelligence collection, and law-enforcement information sharing and co-operation. Among other outcomes, the task force will deliver: a leaders' group dedicated to the regular and routine exchange of insight and strategy a working group tasked with developing proposals for case...
What is the background to the review? In October 2023, the Home Office asked Jonathan Fisher KC to carry out an independent review of Disclosure and Fraud offences (the ‘ Review’). Announced under the Conservative government’s 2023 Fraud Strategy, the Review was commissioned to examine how effectively the disclosure regime operates and whether the existing legislative framework is fit to tackle the demands of modern fraud. The catalyst was the exponential growth in material generated in criminal investigations and the resulting pressure on the criminal disclosure system. As society becomes ever more digitised, the quantity of case material has surged, most starkly in ‘sophisticated’ offences such as fraud, which are document-heavy and increasingly reliant on digital evidence. The framework set by the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 (the ‘ CPIA 1996’) has struggled to keep pace, and, as highlighted in the...
Approach to Consumer Protection The CMA has indicated in its Approach to Consumer Protection that, over the first 12 months of the new regime, it will: home in on conduct causing the greatest possible harm to consumers and showing clear and obvious breaches of the new rules continue to give priority to areas of essential expenditure, supporting people who are facing pressure on household budgets undertake wide-ranging and ongoing engagement with businesses and produce further accessible guidance to help firms comply with the law The CMA will concentrate on what it deems the most egregious infringements of consumer law, such as: high-pressure sales tactics directly aimed at vulnerable consumers supplying consumers with information that is objectively untrue automatically unfair commercial practices, including the additional unfair practice of posting fake reviews fees that remain hidden until very late in the purchasing journey contract terms that are plainly one-sided and unfair, including those that impose unfair exit...
In this issue: Criminal procedure and evidence Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Environmental offences Financial services and pensions offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Insolvency offences and Companies Act offences Local authority prosecutions International Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information No Weekly Highlights on 24 April 2025 Criminal procedure and evidence Courts and Tribunals Judiciary publishes updated AI guidance and introduces Copilot Chat for judges The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary has issued refreshed guidance on using artificial intelligence ( AI), superseding the December 2023 version. The revision widens the glossary of AI terminology and brings in added sections addressing misinformation, bias and dataset quality. It also deploys Microsoft Copilot Chat for judicial office holders via e Judiciary accounts, and confirms that...
The successful prosecution of Dmitrii Ovsiannikov The successful prosecution of Dmitrii Ovsiannikov, the first person convicted of breaching the UK’s sanctions regime against Russia, has triggered debate among lawyers, who argue that pursuing spending on basic living costs sits uneasily with Britain’s foreign policy objectives. While police, prosecutors and ministers trumpeted the Southwark Crown Court verdict as a warning shot to oligarchs, some practitioners caution it may send the wrong signal. Carter- Ruck associate Tasha Benkhadra suggested the National Crime Agency’s efforts would be better directed at suspected circumvention tied to arms transactions and the funding of sectors essential to the Russian war effort. A Southwark jury found Ovsiannikov guilty of circumventing the UK sanctions regime on 9 April 2025, and he received a 40-month prison term on 11 April 2025. The case alleged he and his family intentionally sidestepped financial...
Context The Water ( Special Measures) Act 2025 ( W( SM) A 2025) was brought before Parliament on 4 September 2024 and attained Royal Assent on 24 February 2025. It stems from broad dissatisfaction with the behaviour and performance of water and sewerage undertakers across England and Wales. Public trust has been undermined by repeated pollution control failures, chronic underinvestment in infrastructure, and the awarding of executive bonuses. In 2022–2023, £9.7m in bonuses and benefits went to senior executives, even as serious pollution incidents increased. Four companies were responsible for over 90% of those incidents. Ofwat research found only a quarter of customers believed water companies act in the public interest. In response, the government pledged legislation to hold poor performers to account, bolster regulatory powers, and start restoring confidence. W( SM) A 2025 is presented as the first step in a broader,...
Late last year, the Home Office issued a policy paper. It was triggered by a House of Lords committee review into the effect of MSA 2015. While the committee hailed MSA 2015 as pioneering, it emphasised that ‘the world has changed and best practice has moved on’. It urged government to introduce ‘proportionate sanctions’ for organisations that fail to comply with the Act’s obligations; most notably the annual requirement for companies to report on measures to identify and prevent modern slavery. The report also portrays a ‘current approach of no enforcement’ in relation to MSA 2015. Under the Act, businesses with turnover exceeding £36m must publish a yearly slavery and human trafficking statement. However, it does not set out what that statement must contain. The policy paper further notes that, although the Home Secretary can seek an injunction to enforce...
In this issue: Investigating criminal conduct Criminal procedure and evidence Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Consumer protection and cartels Environmental offences Financial services and pensions offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Local authority prosecutions Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Investigating criminal conduct UK government must act to support the Office of the Whistleblower Bill. Those of us who have long campaigned to reform whistleblowing legislation are encouraged that the issue is finally receiving the attention it merits. It is reassuring to see broad consensus that whistleblowers should be properly shielded and that their disclosures ought to be respected and examined. Yet converting that agreement into meaningful progress remains a major challenge. See News Analysis: UK...
Nick Ephgrave Nick Ephgrave acknowledged it was no secret that the SFO has witnessed a slight drop-off in the number of companies approaching the specialist anti-corruption body with suspected fraud and bribery within their organisation. To address this, the SFO intends to invest further in covert intelligence-gathering so it can better understand what is happening in corporate settings and, in turn, either pursue targets or encourage them to come forward, he told Law360 and reporters from other news outlets. Ephgrave said he wants to be more in control of the referrals received by an agency that largely depends on businesses volunteering information, with the aim of invigorating and provoking self-reporting by companies. He added that he is really seeking to drive up the number of corporates the SFO deals with, whether through self-reporting supported by revised corporate guidance, via...
Arguably, the priority is to designate a whistleblowing champion for the whole of government, rather than limiting the role to regulators, enforcement bodies, or a lone department. The moment is right. A proposed Office of the Whistleblower Bill—intended to set up an independent office to protect whistleblowers—was most recently brought before Parliament in December 2024. Honed over more than five years, its evolution has been shaped not only by whistleblower experience, but also by leading legal specialists who practise in this area day in, day out. Consequently, it marks a significant leap beyond other legislation, because it tackles fundamental questions such as: Who qualifies as a whistleblower? How can information be reported securely? What does protection from retaliation entail, and how can it be delivered promptly and effectively? How do we remedy the inequality of arms between...
In this issue: Investigating criminal conduct Sentencing Criminal procedure and evidence Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Consumer protection and cartels Fraud, forgery, tax and theft offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Local authority prosecutions Money laundering International Lex Talk®Corporate Crime: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Investigating criminal conduct Home Office tables eight draft Investigatory Powers Act codes before Parliament The Home Office has presented eight revised and new draft codes of practice under the Investigatory Powers Act to Parliament. The codes span bulk personal datasets, equipment interference, communications data, intelligence services’ use of data, interception of communications, the notices regime and bulk data acquisition. These revisions to...
Background R v Layden [2025] UKSC 12. Under CAA 1968, s 7(1), if the Court of Appeal allows an appeal against a conviction, it may direct that the defendant be tried again where the court considers this to be required in the interests of justice. CAA 1968, s 8 provides additional rules and associated procedural requirements for any retrial, including, in particular, that the defendant must be proceeded against on a fresh indictment (a document that sets out the charges) and that, absent the leave of the Court of Appeal, arraignment cannot occur after two months have elapsed from the date of the retrial order. Arraignment is the court procedure by which the defendant is identified, the indictment is read to them, they are asked to plead guilty or not guilty, and the plea is recorded. Section 8 then supplies a process enabling the...
As the deadlock persists, frustration is rising among lawyers and clients who want clarity 'one way or the other' from the government, said Adam Schwartz, a white-collar partner at Carlton Fields. ' If they’re [the government] going to proceed with something, then OK; if not, that should be stated as well,' he told Law360. ' This limbo is a difficult place to be for both lawyers and clients'. White-collar practitioners are now trying to help clients 'understand that the rhetoric (from the Trump administration) may or may not align with the Department's real, practical enforcement tools,' said Marisa Darden, chair of the white-collar, government investigations and regulatory practice at Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff LLP. ' If you’re a client with an open FCPA matter, it’s reasonable to push your lawyers to try to get it wrapped up,' she said. ' But we no longer have...
In this issue: Spring Statement 2025 Investigating criminal conduct Criminal procedure and evidence Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Consumer protection and cartels Cybercrime and data protection offences Environmental offences Financial services and pensions offences Fraud, forgery, tax and theft offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences International Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers New Q& As Useful information Spring Statement 2025 Spring Statement 2025— Key Criminal Justice announcements In the Spring Statement 2025, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, outlined a suite of criminal justice initiatives. These include boosting the number of prosecutions for tax fraud, creating a scheme to compensate those who report tax non-compliance, and clamping down on tax evasion arising from...
Last month, President Donald Trump unveiled plans to pare back US involvement in cross-border bribery prosecutions, imposing a six-month halt on enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ( FCPA). The US has historically been a key engine behind corporate anti-bribery actions worldwide, and the shift has sparked concern about its effect on international efforts... Jason Williams, who leads the SFO’s fraud and corruption division, said it is too early to judge the full ramifications. He added that the present uncertainty could create openings for the UK and Europe. Speaking at an event today, Williams suggested the pause might even quicken some SFO work: with the Department of Justice not pursuing FCPA matters or advancing related enquiries, the SFO can shape and run its own cases and push ahead......
Hanson outlined in full the ongoing programme of work that is under way, as ministers prepare for reform, during his keynote address to the Global Anti- Scams Alliance summit, staged in London on 26 March 2025 and 27 March 2025, according to the Home Office. The programme features detailed plans for partnering with industry and cross-border collaboration, as well as confronting technology-enabled fraud. ' Fraud is an ever more international business, driven by some of the most appalling criminal gangs operating in the world today', Hanson said in a statement......
Tom Hayes, once a trader at Citigroup and UBS, and Carlo Palombo, formerly of Barclays, are contesting their convictions before the UK Supreme Court at what is due to be a three-day hearing in court. The proceedings could once again turn on a decade-old issue that has repeatedly gone against both former traders on several previous appeals in the past: did taking their banks’ commercial interests into account when submitting interest rates on their behalf automatically render them dishonest? Hayes and Palombo are not the only people also closely awaiting the answer to that question. Nine individuals have been convicted or pleaded guilty for rigging benchmark rates, known as the London interbank offered rate ( Libor) and the Euro interbank offered rate ( Euribor), and a successful appeal could reopen those old cases. Maia Cohen- Lask, a partner at Corker Binning, said: ' If the...
Protection from Unfair Trading Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 ( Commencement No 2) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/272, reg 2, most of DMCCA 2024, Pt 4, Ch 1 will take effect on 6 April 2025. The provisions not commencing concern consumers’ private law rights of redress ( DMCCA 2024, ss 232, 234 and 235). Chapter 1, ‘ Protection from Unfair Trading’, supersedes the Consumer Protection from Unfair Commercial Practices Regulations 2008 ( CPUTR 2008), SI 2008/1277, as outlined in DMCCA 2024, s 224. In contrast to much of the remainder of the Act, Pt 4, Ch 1 is not designed to be a wholesale reform of existing statutory protections; instead, it largely preserves the prior legal effect, with minor modifications (see Explanatory Note to DMCCA 2024, para 1330). Many updates are definitional refinements that recognise the case law developed since CPUTR 2008 came into...
Trials are now being timetabled for 2028. The backlog in the magistrates' courts, the entry point for all criminal matters, topped 300,000 last year. Chronic underfunding throughout the justice system causes and deepens the delays. The upshot is the worst of outcomes: cases falling apart, defendants and complainants enduring years before a hearing, and miscarriages of justice. Paradoxically, these strains may prompt better judgement in certain enforcement actions. Even diligent organisations can suffer incidents. Pursuing a prosecution is often out of proportion where an organisation has taken all reasonable steps to protect safety, notwithstanding a merely technical infringement. Legal context When the Robens report on workplace health and safety was finalised in 1972, a clear consensus emerged: criminal proceedings are not suited to most offences under health and safety law, and ought to be kept for breaches that are flagrant, wilful or reckless. The Health and...
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When evaluating a general damages claim, the practitioner ought initially to refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG)...
This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews mechanisms used in settling litigation. A Tomlin order consists of a consent order paired with a schedule. It operates to stay proceedings on terms that have been agreed. The provisions contained in the schedule may remain confidential. This Practice Note describes the scope of confidentiality attaching to the schedule and sets out how it differs from a standard consent order. Sample wording for a Tomlin order is included, alongside links to precedents, as well as guidance on court approval. It also addresses varying, setting aside and enforcing a Tomlin order, including the considerations the court will take into account when handling applications for each. Further guidance is provided on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR; however, some courts and divisions impose very specific requirements for both drafting and approval, and for approaching the schedule and confidentiality issues. Accordingly, you must consider the particular rules and court guide provisions in the forum where your claim is proceeding when drawing up the Tomlin order...
Date [ date ] Parties [ name of Landlord ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Landlord) [ name of Tenant ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Tenant) [ [ name of Guarantor ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Guarantor) ] [ [ name of Mortgagee ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Mortgagee) ] Definitions Within this Deed, the terms below shall be interpreted as follows: [ Annual Rent • the annual sum reserved under the Lease; ] [ Insurance Rent • the Tenant’s share of the Landlord’s costs of insuring the Property (as set out in the Lease); ] Lease • the lease of the Property dated [ date ], entered into between (1) [ the Landlord OR [ name ...
I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...
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