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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 Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common.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 new offence does not target individuals: Individuals are not the direct focus of the new offence; they can already face proceedings under statutes such as the Bribery Act 2020 or the Fraud Act 2006. Where a company commits a crime with the demonstrated 'consent or connivance' of a senior member of staff, that person can, in some cases, be culpable as well. Lawyers caution that corporates likely to be charged with the 'failure to prevent fraud' offence may try to strike arrangements with prosecutors to avert a trial—a deferred prosecution agreement ( DPA). A common term of a DPA is that the business assists in the prosecution of individuals. Once the 'failure to prevent fraud' offence takes effect, we should expect an uptick in formal fraud investigations by the Serious Fraud Office, said Daren Allen, a partner at Shoosmiths LLP. He also...
The launch of OTSI is accompanied by legislative changes to the UK's sanctions enforcement framework via the Trade, Aircraft and Shipping Sanctions ( Civil Enforcement) Regulations 2024, SI 2024/948. The most significant changes are as follows: OTSI gains authority to levy civil fines for certain breaches of trade sanctions. Penalties may reach £1 million per contravention, or 50% of the breach’s value if higher, and can be imposed on a strict liability footing. These reforms do not cover infringements involving the movement of goods across the UK’s borders, or those relating to military and dual‑use goods; such matters stay solely with HMRC under the existing criminal penalties regime. Nor do the new measures apply to violations of the Russian Oil Price cap or to internet‑related sanctions concerning Russia and Belarus. OTSI will take on selected trade licensing...
Risk & Compliance weekly highlights—3 October 2024 In this issue: Financial sanctions Other financial crime Cybersecurity Other Risk & Compliance updates this week Lex Talk®Risk & Compliance: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts Trackers New and updated content Latest Q& A Financial sanctions The Office of Financial Sanctions ( OFSI) has added two additional frequently asked questions to the UK Financial Sanctions FAQs. The new questions specifically concern General Licence INT/2024/4919848, as well as trust services. See: LNB News 01/10/2024 24. The Office of Financial Sanctions ( OFSI) has revised General Licence INT/2023/3179120 on payment to water companies for water and sewage. OFSI has updated the definitions of UK Designated Persons and Return Payments, and has also made the validity of the...
The court found In three distinct cases brought by the Belgian and French bar associations, the court determined that the EU’s ban on supplying legal advisory services to the Russian government or entities established there does not undermine the fundamental right to obtain legal advice from a lawyer. The judges held that the restriction does not apply to services strictly necessary to exercise the right of defence in judicial proceedings and to ensure an effective legal remedy. Consequently, legal counsel connected to judicial, administrative, or arbitral proceedings falls outside the scope of the prohibition, meaning only non-contentious matters remain barred......
In September 2024, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation ( OFSI) issued a £15,000 fine to a concierge and management firm that processed property transactions connected to a designated individual — the first instance of the regulator penalising a company for a Russia sanctions breach. Many observers and commentators thought OFSI would treat this watershed sanction as a warning shot to head off future violations. However, the authority has used the case to spotlight compliance lessons arising from Integral Concierge Service’s missteps. “ The core message that businesses should take sanctions seriously and install measures to curb their risks is indeed sound, and penalties are needed to keep that message current,” said John Binns, a partner at BCL Solicitors. OFSI’s tone is practical, notable from a regulator whose perceived lack of zeal for enforcement has prompted criticism of its appetite for...
The Equality and Human Rights Commission ( EHRC) has issued updated guidance, urging employers to act proactively to fulfil their duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, a requirement that takes effect in October. Assess potential risks Decide on practical steps they can implement Routinely review the measures put in place to tackle sexual harassment The EHRC will be able to take enforcement action against organisations and, where it finds breaches of the law, may issue an unlawful act notice or seek a court injunction. The EHRC, which promotes equality and non-discrimination laws, also states that employers must create a ‘robust anti-harassment policy’ and communicate it widely. This policy should cover instances where clients or customers sexually harass members of staff......
Risk & Compliance weekly highlights—26 September 2024 In this issue: Risk & Compliance forecast AML, CTF and counter-proliferation financing Other financial crime Other Risk & Compliance updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Risk & Compliance forecast New Risk & Compliance forecast as at 24 September 2024 Our latest Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 24 September 2024) is now available. This month we cover: (1) a new consultation from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology concerning the data protection fee regime; (2) plans to reform the AML supervisory regime; (3) developments to the ICO’s consultation on regulating Artificial Intelligence; and (4) confirmation that the new Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation will be operational in October 2024. Read News Analysis: New Risk & Compliance forecast as at 24 September 2024......
New Risk & Compliance forecast as at 24 September 2024 Our Risk and Compliance forecast as at 24 September 2024 monitors anticipated regulatory shifts affecting risk and compliance, enabling you to prepare for developments that could impact your organisation and inform planning. Please examine it in detail, thoroughly and closely, yet several matters that ought to be on your radar are outlined below......
Ephgrave, who will celebrate his first year in post on 25 September 2024, launched five fresh fraud inquiries in rapid order as he moved to recast the reputation of the white-collar agency after a run of headline failures. With the burst of openings now easing and the agency devoting time and resources to sifting evidence, white-collar specialists are asking if Ephgrave can sustain his early emphasis on swift action, pragmatism and consumer-protection matters. That concern is sharper while cross-border bribery and corruption investigations — by nature more intricate and slower — remain, for many white-collar practitioners, the blockbuster work the specialist prosecutor is singularly positioned to pursue. Louise Hodges, head of white-collar crime at Kingsley Napley LLP, said there is intense pressure on the SFO to prove itself in its stated mission as a specialist prosecuting authority targeting top-level serious or complex fraud,...
Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programmes ( ECCP) Nicole Argentieri, principal deputy assistant lawyer general and chief of the DOJ’s Criminal Division, stated in prepared remarks at a Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics conference that prosecutors will scrutinise how companies gauge and handle the risks of new technology, including AI, across both their business and their compliance programmes. Under the ECCP policy, prosecutors will consider: the technology a company and its staff use to conduct business; whether the company has carried out a risk assessment on the use of that technology; and whether appropriate steps have been taken to mitigate any risk associated with its use. She added that the division also wants to know whether firms are monitoring and testing their technology to assess if it operates as intended and aligns with the firm’s code of conduct. Argentieri said the ECCP was further updated to include...
In this issue: Data protection Financial sanctions AML, CTF and counter-proliferation financing Other financial crime Cybersecurity Other Risk & Compliance updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts Trackers New and updated content Latest Q& A Data protection Commission to consult on SCCs for third-country data importers subject to EU GDPR The European Commission has revealed plans to open a consultation on fresh standard contractual clauses ( SCCs) for exporting personal data to controllers and processors in third countries that are subject to the EU General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation ( EU) 206/679 ( EU GDPR). These SCCs are intended to sit alongside the current clauses used for transfers to third-country importers not caught by the EU GDPR. Adoption is targeted for Q2 2025. See: LNB News 13/09/2024 60. ICO responds to Meta’s...
The Serious Fraud Office ( SFO) 'was not entitled to withhold the information requested' on the ENRC investigation, the General Regulatory Chamber of the First- Tier Tribunal ( FTT) said. The General Regulatory Chamber of the First- Tier Tribunal ( FTT) has ruled that the SFO had no right to withhold the requested ENRC data and has directed the agency to release the figures within 42 days. The decision marks a win for George Greenwood of British newspaper The Times, who contested the UK Information Commissioner’s Office ( ICO) decision permitting the SFO to invoke freedom of information exemptions and withhold the figures. The prosecutor’s decade-long probe into ENRC, the UK arm of Kazakhstan-focused miner Eurasian Resources Group, concluded in August 2023 without any charges, and is thought to have racked up costs totalling tens of millions of pounds. In December, the High Court held the SFO...
Broadstone said that most cyber-insurance offered protection only against losses arising from 'malicious' causes, whereas the outage caused by Crowd Strike was the result of an accident. A mishandled update to the corporate cyber security system meant about 8.5 million Microsoft Windows devices could not start up normally. The 19 July 2024 outage disrupted air travel, financial institutions and thousands of businesses. Medical teams were obliged to turn patients away from doctors’ surgeries......
The statement cautioned that algorithms may enable rivals to exchange competitively sensitive information, fix prices, or co-ordinate on other terms or commercial strategies in breach of competition laws. It has become evident that both the Commission and the CMA are prioritising ex officio cartel enforcement, including by boosting resources and developing new detection and enforcement tools to drive prosecutions for cartel conduct. This article sets out a review of where these jurisdictions’ approaches to cartel enforcement converge and where they differ. In terms of similarities Broaden the definition of what amounts to cartel behaviour Rely less on leniency applications to trigger cartel probes Enhance detection methods Place greater weight on prosecuting obstruction of justice Strengthen communication and co-operation between enforcement bodies Within the EU, the Commission acts as the principal enforcer for cartel offences that span across Member State...
At Southwark Crown Court, Judge Nicholas Rimmer quashed the conviction of Anna Machkevitch for not complying with an SFO requirement to provide documents relating to her father, Alexander Machkevitch—one of the trio of billionaire partners behind ENRC. Jonathan Hall KC of 6KBW, for the SFO, told the brief hearing that the agency accepted there was “no realistic prospect of conviction” and would tender no evidence against the appeal, and that it would not be resisting it either. In July, the SFO confirmed it would not contest Machkevitch’s challenge to the conviction......
In this issue: Financial sanctions Other financial crime Cybersecurity Other Risk & Compliance updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts Trackers New and updated content Financial sanctions Revocation of General trade licence Russia sanctions – legal advisory services The Export Control Joint Unit and the Department for Business and Trade confirm that the General Trade Licence ( Russia Sanctions – Legal Advisory Services) was withdrawn on 6 September 2024, following amendments to the Russia Sanctions Regulations. The licence had allowed the direct or indirect supply of legal advisory services aimed at compliance with specified laws or measures, including restrictive measures on or concerning Russia. See: LNB News 06/09/2024 44. Updates to guidance on Russian services sanctions The Department for Business and Trade ( DBT) and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office have refreshed guidance on complying with professional and business services sanctions connected to Russia. These updates align the guidance with changes to...
In this issue: Data protection Financial sanctions Other financial crime Daily and weekly news alerts Trackers New and updated content Data protection The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology ( DSIT) has begun a consultation on proposals to revise the data protection fees due from data controllers to the Information Commissioner’s Office ( ICO). The changes are intended to secure the funding needed for the ICO to perform its remit—offering guidance, advice and support to organisations—and to achieve full cost recovery in line with HM Treasury’s Managing Public Money principles. The consultation runs until 26 September 2024. See: LNB News 30/08/2024 18. Financial sanctions The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office ( FCDO) has updated its guidance on the Russia ( Sanctions) ( EU Exit) Regulations 2019, SI 2019/855. Prohibition 46Z16R has been revised to update licensing information relating to Russian diamonds processed in third countries. See: LNB News 02/09/2024 27......
How is AI being utilised to facilitate financial crime and what type of activities should businesses be watching out for in the fight against financial crime? While AI and associated tools are among the most powerful means of combating financial crime—and their success is clear—they have limitations and introduce notable risks. AI acts as a force multiplier for criminality, breathing new life into ‘old’ fraud through automation. It can increase the speed, effectiveness and persistence of money laundering, insider trading and cyber-attacks. AI can be used to: strengthen existing attacks—making threats harder for AML, anti-fraud, anti-virus tools and other filters to detect devise new attacks—by manipulating or fabricating data to create confusion and/or impersonate officials automate attacks—enabling large-scale financial crime with minimal effort Generative AI can produce synthetic identities using forged passports, driving licences and utility bills, then establish sham...
According to Giles Thomson, the head of financial sanctions at OFSI, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation agency will impose its first monetary penalties for a breach of measures targeting Russian elites and their enablers at some point before the end of the year. Speaking at an economic crime conference in Cambridge, in eastern England, Thomson said that the sanction would be pursued via the authority’s civil recovery powers. He did not make clear whether the case relates to a business or a private person. The official described the move as the outcome of complex investigations undertaken since the invasion of Ukraine, over that period......
Yet the likelihood of naming a successor to a post once regarded as virtually ministerial is still as murky as ever, prolonging a state of affairs branded by campaigners as a disgrace for a nation that likes to bill itself as a global leader against corruption. The anti-corruption champion answers to the Cabinet Office, the department responsible for supporting the prime minister and helping to keep the machinery of government running smoothly. Consequently, the prime minister sponsors the appointment. Since the inaugural appointment in 2004 there have been seven champions in all, with seasoned parliamentarians typically filling the brief. Previous intervals between holders have occurred, but the present hiatus is comfortably the longest. The champion’s function is to scrutinise the government’s delivery of pledges set out in its anti-corruption strategy, last refreshed in 2017 to cover the period up to 2022. There has been no...
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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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