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Insights into shifting commercial fraud trends

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Charlie Mercer & Astrid Gillam deliver the data on civil fraud claims in the English courts
  • New data shows that civil fraud claims have increased since 2014.
  • The general King’s Bench Division is now the most popular court, indicating an increased proportion of lower-value claims.
  • The English courts remain attractive to and respected by foreign users, but there are challenges.

In 2023, Stewarts and data analytics platform Solomonic produced a report looking at data relating to civil fraud claims in the English courts. It was the first of its kind. For the first time, it provided hard data to interrogate perceptions of fraud litigation in England and Wales.

This summer, we have revisited and updated that data. This article discusses our findings and other important current developments for the future of fraud litigation in the UK.

Volume of claims

In 2023, the key point we wanted to test was whether civil fraud litigation had increased in England and Wales.

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Quillon Law—Neil Dooley

Quillon Law—Neil Dooley

Disputes firm expands fraud and investigations practice with partner hire

Charles Russell Speechlys—Vadim Romanoff

Charles Russell Speechlys—Vadim Romanoff

Firm strengthens corporate tax and incentives team with partner hire

Burges Salmon—Gary Delderfield & Alec Bennett

Burges Salmon—Gary Delderfield & Alec Bennett

Partner and senior associate join pensions team

NEWS
Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys [2025] EWHC 2341 (KB) has restated a fundamental truth, writes John Gould, chair of Russell-Cooke, in this week's NLJ: only authorised persons can conduct litigation. The decision sparked alarm, but Gould stresses it merely confirms the Legal Services Act 2007
The government’s decision to make the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) the Single Professional Services Supervisor marks a watershed in the UK’s fight against money laundering, says Rebecca Hughes of Corker Binning in this week's NLJ. The FCA will now oversee 60,000 firms across legal and accountancy sectors—a massive expansion of remit that raises questions over resources and readiness 
The High Court's decision in Parfitt v Jones [2025] EWHC 1552 (Ch) provided a striking reminder of the need to instruct the right expert in retrospective capacity assessments, says Ann Stanyer of Wedlake Bell in NLJ this week
Paige Coulter of Quinn Emanuel reports on the UK’s first statutory definition of SLAPPs under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023in NLJ this week
In this week's NLJ, Sophie Houghton of LexisPSL distils the key lesson from recent costs cases: if you want to exceed guideline hourly rates (GHR), you must prove why
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