Serious and
complex fraud matters

Janes Solicitors have a long standing and leading reputation for representing clients in serious and high-profile fraud matters.

With the recent appointment of a new director to the Serious Fraud Office, there has been a stated intent towards a more investigation-led focus at the institution. This new appointment may see an increase in fraud prosecutions in the UK, particularly involving tax fraud, white collar crime, bribery and corruption, and complex financial crime. Our expertise in advising and defending individuals and businesses under investigation or suspicion gives us the edge in providing creative solutions and practical, common sense advice.

Janes Solicitors are a highly skilled and experienced serious fraud solicitors. We will provide immediate advice and support to you or your business if you need advice, are under suspicion or investigation, or are subject to interview or prosecution. We carefully and tactically deploy the best possible strategy for our clients throughout each and every stage. Our fraud lawyers have the critical and technical expertise you need. With our broad range of knowledge and depth of experience in this demanding field, we have proven success in handling all serious and complex fraud cases.

After carefully assessing your case, we hand select the most appropriate team, tailored specifically to your needs to work alongside you and support you every step of the way.

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Janes Solicitors are a leading law firm. We work with the best professionals and experts to ensure you have the best defence team on your side. We have expertise in all aspects of serious and complex fraud, including:

 

Our serious fraud
expertise & experience

Janes Solicitors are specialists in the defence of fraud and white collar crime. We have a leading and well-earned reputation for achieving excellent results for our clients.

Our proven track record, personal approach and fearless commitment to the cause of our clients gives us the edge over other firms meaning we are highly sought after by clients.

We hold a strong presence and first-class reputation in defending serious and complex fraud cases and are regularly instructed in the largest and most high-profile cases in the UK. This goes back to the case of Hill Samuel, the first case prosecuted (and lost) by the Serious Fraud Office, which we successfully defended. We are also founding members of the Legal Aid Agency’s Specialist Fraud Panel.

As our client, you can be confident in our unparalleled quality reputation for successfully defending serious and complex fraud cases as set out below:

David Janes | Partner

Head of Serious and Complex Fraud and Taxation
020 7930 5100 | Out of hours: 07789 622 430

Fiona Gavriel | Partner

MA
020 7930 5100 | Out of hours: 07789 622 430

James Mullion | Partner

BA
020 7930 5100 | Out of hours: 07789 622 430

Notable cases

Rolls Royce Investigations

Janes Solicitors were instructed by nine past and present executives surrounding the investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into allegations of bribery and corruption. A keynote investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into one of the UK’s leading companies.

Operation Florin

Representing the lead defendant in an alleged pension liberation fraud valued in excess of £9 million and involving over 800 victims Nationwide. The case raised significant public policy consideration due to the impact on public as a result of pension liberation promotion by the Government and the huge rise in the number of frauds related to the same.

Operation Cindy

Large Trading Standards prosecution of a web developer who designed copycat Government websites. The value of the case was in excess of £30m and involved significant and complex technological and IT elements.  Janes also assisted in the defendant’s dealings with the Advertising Standards Agency.

R v Osmond (Central Criminal Court)

Representing a solicitor in connection with the SFO inquiry in respect of ENRC where he has been charged with offences under the Proceeds of Crime Act and forgery at Southwark Crown Court.

Reporting:

R v Stunt (Leeds Crown Court)

Successfully representing our client in respect of an allegations of forgery and money laundering of £266 million, which was linked with the FCA prosecution against National Westminster Bank in relation to funds deposited into National Westminster Bank.

Reporting:

R v Woolcott (Southwark Crown Court)

Successfully representing a client charged with fraud in relation to the mis-sale of carbon credits as investment products to the retail market. The defendants were acquitted following successful objection by a Defence Counsel to the qualifications and status of the prosecution ‘expert’ witness.

Reporting:

R v Goodman (LIBOR) (Southwark Crown Court)

High profile acquittal of our client, a former ICAP broker and a key defendant (referred to as “Lord Libor”) in the Serious Fraud Office prosecution concerning alleged criminal manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), a ‘benchmark rate’ that underpins about $350 trillion of financial products worldwide. This case was extremely high-profile and complex, with disclosure from over twenty global banking institutes and referenced millions of financial trades across multiple jurisdictions.  Janes were the only defence team to utilise industry financial academic expert Professor Neuberger to challenge ‘rate setting’ manipulation allegations.

Reporting:

R v Webster (Operation Elveden) (Southwark Crown Court)

Successful representation of the Deputy Editor of the Sun newspaper in the ‘phone hacking trial’. Our client was acquitted of conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office following charges brought under the auspices of Operation Elveden and Operation Weeting, the investigation into the legality of journalistic practices at News Group Newspapers. The charges were unique in legal history, in that there was no such similar prosecution which examined the conduct of a newspaper and its staff as a whole. The legal issues were therefore complex and opaque – involving a thorough examination of the concept of a conspiracy, the meaning of the substantive offence of committing misconduct and broadening out to examination of the impact on the defendant’s human rights under Article 6 of the ECHR.

The case naturally attracted widespread national publicity and was reported across all the major national newspapers. As a result of this prosecution and the issues raised during the trial the Law Commission conducted its own investigation into the viability and appropriateness of using this offence in prosecutions against journalists.   

Reporting:

Operation Criminal Mustang (HMRC)

Representing the director of a number of companies in an ongoing investigation and ancillary restraint proceedings brought under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. The long-running investigation is being conducted by multiple police forces and HMRC and is focussed upon alleged offences of bribery and corruption, fraud, money laundering and tax evasion alleged to involve a number of suspects including persons from a major UK trade union.

Reporting:

Electoral Commission v Paisley

Our client was a prominent politician investigated in respect of a series of allegations of electoral offences contrary to the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000.

Reporting:

 

R v Ryan (Southwark Crown Court)

Representing a director accused of fraudulent trading involving the mis-selling of financial products up to £100m, in the longest fraud trial during lockdown. This was the first carbon credit case to be prosecuted following the very public discrediting of the Prosecution expert Andrew Agar.

Reporting:

Egan v Drummond & Drummond (Westminster Magistrates’ Court)

Successfully representing Jason and Justin Drummond, two brothers connected with running of AIM-listed company Media-Corp who faced a private prosecution brought by a shareholder alleging fraud. Successfully applied for summons to be withdrawn in the Magistrates Court. In addition, and unusually for a Defendant in a private prosecution, a defence costs order was awarded against the ‘Prosecutor’.

Reporting:

R v Gold (Southwark Crown Court)

Janes Solicitors represented a lead defendant in a seven-handed conspiracy to cheat HMRC in what has been described as one of the ‘largest direct taxation frauds in the UK’ amounting to over £268m tax at risk. The underlying business related to green projects for Research and Development across the globe and environmental carbon trading with investments by hundreds of High Net Worth Individuals.

Reporting:

R v Khan (Southwark Crown Court)

Acquittal of our client, the lead defendant in a 15-handed conspiracy to defraud mortgage fraud investigated by the Economic Crime Department of the City of London Police. The case involved several well-known high-street banking institutions, including Barclays Private Clients International and complex offshore and international property transactions using trusts. The combined value of the alleged frauds were £40m.

Reporting:

R v McCoy (Birmingham Crown Court)

Representing a former KPMG Partner alleged to have cheated HMRC in investment schemes. This case concerned ‘arrangements’ allegedly designed to create tax losses approaching £150 million for high net worth individuals seeking to reduce tax bills by making claims for relief on capital losses under ss. 131 and 132 of the Income Tax Act 2007.

Reporting:

R v Amin (Southwark Crown Court)

High profile acquittal of former RBS banker in the first HMRC prosecution against investors in film schemes.  The case attracted extensive media attention as it sent shockwaves through the tax advisory industry as investors were also now being targeted. One of a series of three trials prosecuting thirteen defendants including the financial advisor, founder and promoter, investors and film directors.

The case was unusual in that in one trial a genuine film was made, and the other film productions were used as a smoke screen to camouflage grossly inflated invoices. This particular trial turned on falsified diary entries for the bogus film productions where money was transferred across multiple jurisdictions and accounts to disguise the circular nature of the scheme financing. This is another case which demonstrates our firm’s role at the vanguard of white-collar criminal defence work.

Reporting:

R v Thomas (Southwark Crown Court)

High profile acquittal of our client, the CEO and Founder of pioneering Fibre Optic Communications and Technology companies, H2O Networks Ltd and i3 Group Limited in the Serious Fraud Office prosecution valued at over £160 million.  The case involved complex invoice factoring and alleged forgery of high value contracts and attracted widespread publicity. Janes instructed a forensic computer expert to challenge the fabrication of several key contracts on the basis of cross ‘user access’ to office computers.

Reporting:

R v Wootton (Central Criminal Court)

Known as the ‘Jubilee Line Corruption Trial’ (Wikipedia), Janes Solicitors represented a key defendant in one of the most iconic fraud and corruption cases of modern times. This was in respect of a £60 million fraud in connection with the extension of London Underground’s Jubilee line. The trial started in June 2003 and continued for 21 months before collapsing in March 2005.

Reporting:

R v Lunn (Southwark Crown Court)

This was a major HMRC prosecution of a leading tax accountant engaged in what was said to be a systematic long-term fraud against HMRC on behalf of clients, himself and his associates. The client was the ‘accountant to the stars’, counting Jeremy Paxman and Fiona Bruce amongst his 7,000 clients. The case involved the manipulation of the tax affairs of clients running to over £117m.

Reporting:

R v Lynch (Central Criminal Court)

Arguably the most highly publicised fraud trial of the decade and certainly the first of its kind, Janes Solicitors represented the high profile jockey Fergal Lynch who was charged with six others, including six-time British Champion jockey Kieren Fallon, with a conspiracy to defraud Betfair customers by fixing races.  Following submissions in which Janes Solicitors took a leading role at the end of the prosecution case all defendants were acquitted after the Judge ruled there was no case to answer.  This was a huge victory after a lengthy investigation and prosecution.

Reporting:

R v Grillo and Grillo (Isleworth Crown Court)

In what was the ‘trial of the year 2013’ Janes Solicitors represented both Grillo sisters accused of fraudulently spending over £685,000 on the credit cards of Charles Saatchi’s private company while working as personal assistants to Nigella Lawson and Charles Saatchi.  Both sisters were acquitted on charges of fraud.  The case attracted unprecedented world media interest, appearing on the global news every day for over a month and headlining the world press.

Reporting:

R v Devenney (Central Criminal Court)

We represented a Petty Naval Officer before Mr. Justice Saunders at the Central Criminal Court in respect of alleged breaches of the Official Secrets Act.  This case has been widely reported in the national and international press.

Reporting:

Our exceptional & proven track record

Our skilled and focused approach in handling allegations of fraud, as well as our technical expertise on these demanding cases mark us out as leaders in our field.

Janes Solicitors regularly handles an exceptional caseload in all areas of serious and complex fraud, both in terms of matters coming to trial and new instructions, which include instructions in major Serious Fraud Office, HM Revenue and Customs, Financial Conduct Authority and Trading Standards prosecutions. Below are some of the cases in which we are currently instructed:

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Corporate fraud

Corporate Fraud can be any fraud committed by or against a business. There is a myriad of extremely sophisticated methods used in committing this sort of fraud. Janes Solicitors have the skill and expertise in advising and defending you or your company against allegations of corporate fraud. We also offer advice to assist your business spot the potential dangers of corporate fraud.

 

Our specialised corporate fraud lawyers will advise and represent you every step of the way. If you suspect fraud in your business, or you or your business are suspected of committing fraud then contact us without delay.

Janes Solicitors are highly skilled lawyers and we regularly represent clients facing allegations of Corporate Fraud including:

  • Pyramid schemes
  • Ponzi Schemes
  • Pension Frauds
  • Insurance Fraud
  • Mortgage Fraud
  • Market Abuse
  • Market Manipulation
  • Share Sale Fraud
  • Misrepresentation
  • Abuse of position
  • Failing to disclose information
  • False accounting
  • Insider dealing
  • Bribery and corruption
  • Money laundering and Proceeds of Crime (POCA)
  • Investigations and Prosecutions

Civil fraud

Depending on the type of fraud, investigations and proceedings can be taken in the civil court, the criminal court – or both. The destination depends on many factors and Janes Solicitors will advise you.

Civil action for fraud is commonly an option for those seeking freezing orders and / or a financial remedy.  An advantage to proceedings in the civil court verses a public prosecution by the State is greater control over proceedings.  However civil actions can be costly for clients and we can advise you on the potential cost implications and help manage an effective solution which is tailored to your needs.

In some cases, proceedings are commenced in both the civil and criminal courts.  Janes Solicitors will assist you in both situations.  We regularly advise clients who are subject to worldwide freezing orders against their assets or the assets of their companies.

Read more about how we can help protect your interests if you have received a worldwide freezing order.

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Contact our expert serious & complex fraud defence lawyers London

Janes Solicitors is a high-quality practice providing specialist advice on all areas of serious fraud. Each serious fraud solicitor has extensive experience in all aspects of serious fraud. Our team has a well-earned reputation as leaders in our field and proven track record of success. We take a proactive and pragmatic approach to legal advice and build a solid case-tailored defence team of leading professional to suit the needs of each and every one of our clients. We are highly committed to our clients and take pride in our fearless commitment in each and every case.

If you need advice, are under suspicion or investigation or if you are being prosecuted for a serious fraud offence, telephone our offices today on 020 7930 5100, or alternatively you can contact us via our online contact form, and one of our team will be in touch shortly. We are there when you need us. We understand sometimes you may need urgent advice outside normal office hours. We are available seven days a week, you can call us on our out-of-hours service number on 07789 622 430.

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Need advice? Call us now.
020 7930 5100
Out of hours: 07789 622 430