Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

First-tier Tribunal orders SFO to disclose ENRC investigation costs, overturning ICO; public interest outweighs FOI law-enforcement exemptions

Published on: 19 September 2024

Published by an LexisNexis Corporate Crime expert

Legal News

Article summary

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 liable to ENRC for losses arising from the investigation, a finding confirmed on a recent appeal. The sum payable will be set at a trial next year; however, the agency has provided in its accounts for a £237.7m costs bill (around US$310m)...

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