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NLJ this week: Section 303Z17A & the potential for recovery of ill-gotten gains

01 December 2023
Issue: 8051 / Categories: Legal News , Fraud
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Tucked within the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 is a provision with ‘profound implications’ for victims of crime, Nicholas Yeo and Ryan Dowding, both barristers at 3 Raymond Building, write in this week’s NLJ

The ‘pithily named’ section 303Z17A is inserted into the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, permitting, ‘for the first time, victims and true owners to seek the release of their funds which have been made the subject of account freezing and forfeiture’.

Yeo and Dowding take an in-depth look at section 303Z17A, highlighting its scope, application and potential. They note the increasing role of the magistrates’ courts in account freezing and forfeiture proceedings. They explain when section 303Z17A will apply and how an application may be made. However, they also note potential difficulties and complexities that may arise. 

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Freeths—Ruth Clare

Freeths—Ruth Clare

National real estate team bolstered by partner hire in Manchester

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Partner appointed head of family team

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

Firm strengthens agriculture and rural affairs team with partner return

NEWS
Conveyancing lawyers have enjoyed a rapid win after campaigning against UK Finance’s decision to charge for access to the Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has launched a recruitment drive for talented early career and more senior barristers and solicitors
Regulators differed in the clarity and consistency of their post-Mazur advice and guidance, according to an interim report by the Legal Services Board (LSB)
The dangers of uncritical artificial intelligence (AI) use in legal practice are no longer hypothetical. In this week's NLJ, Dr Charanjit Singh of Holborn Chambers examines cases where lawyers relied on ‘hallucinated’ citations — entirely fictitious authorities generated by AI tools
The Solicitors Act 1974 may still underpin legal regulation, but its age is increasingly showing. Writing in NLJ this week, Victoria Morrison-Hughes of the Association of Costs Lawyers argues that the Act is ‘out of step with modern consumer law’ and actively deters fairness
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